Bison Softball Wins Summit League Title

NDSU defeats IUPUI twice to earn automatic bid to NCAA tournament.

May 13, 2017

FARGO, N.D. (NDSU Athletics) – North Dakota State forces game two of The Summit League Softball Championship title for the first time since 2014 as they defeat No 1 IUPUI 10-2 Saturday afternoon at the Ellig Sports Complex. NDSU earns the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The Bison (27-31) jumped out to an early 5-0 lead. The first five Bison to step to the plate came around to score on four hits.

IUPUI (23-28) scored two runs in the bottom half of the second. Thompson and Loge both hit solo shots, to put the Jaguars down 6-2.

North Dakota State pushed four more runs across, on four hits. Stavrou hit her eighth home run of the season with her three-run shot to center field. Beatty hit her third of the double driving in the final run of the inning for the Bison.

IUPUI pushed one across in the bottom of the sixth. The Jags put together a string of hits led by an Armstrong single. Kristin London stepped in as a pinch hitter and came up with a double, driving in another run.

NDSU put the game out of reach for the Jaguars by scoring three runs in the top of the seventh. Beatty got her fourth hit of the game on a solo home run to left field.

Turning Point
North Dakota State started the inning off with a lead-off walk. The Jaguars went on to commit its fourth error of the tournament, allowing the Bison to have runners on the corners. Beatty and Anderson brought in three-runs combined with their back-to-back doubles. Montana DeCamp hit her seventh home run and third of the tournament to end the inning.

Inside The Box Score

Bre Beatty hit three doubles, tying the league record in a single tournament game.
Five Bison had multi-hit games: Zoe Stavrou, Stephanie Soriano, Bre Beatty, Montana DeCamp and Madyson Camacho.
Bre Beatty hit her second home run of the tournament, and her career, in the sixth inning.
Delaney Thompson and McKenzie Loge hit the only home runs for the Jaguars, both coming in the second.
NDSU hit .405 compared to IUPUI hitting just .300 in the game.

News & Notes

The Bison have scored 12 runs in the first inning through the entire tournament.
North Dakota State forces a game two championship game, 12^th in Summit League History.
Bre Beatty hit three doubles, tying the league record in a single tournament game.
This was a rematch of last the 2016 Summit League Championship game.
Coach of the Year, Heather Tarter earns her first loss in the post season.
NDSU now on a three-game winning streak.

The Basics
Score: No. 2 North Dakota State 5, No. 1 IUPUI 3
Records: North Dakota State (28-31), IUPUI (23-29)
Location: Ellig Sports Complex – Fargo, N.D.

FARGO, N.D. – The North Dakota State Bison claimed their fourth straight Summit League Softball Championship title with a 5-3 victory over No. 1 IUPUI Saturday afternoon at the Ellig Sports Complex. NDSU earns the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The Bison (23-29) win their eighth Summit League tournament in the last nine seasons and will learn their fate Sunday night on the NCAA Division I Softball Selection Show at 9 p.m. CT on ESPN2.

IUPUI (23-29) jumped on the bats early, starting with a double from Alyssa Matson. Chitwood followed with an RBI triple. Patterson scored Chitwood on a single through the left side. Dallas would push the final Jaguar across the plate with a single down the left field line, giving IUPUI an early 3-0 lead.

North Dakota State pushed two runs across in the bottom of the second. Renner driving in one run with a single down the right field line and Stavrou driving in the other run with a single up the middle.

The Bison tied it at 3-3 in the bottom of the fourth with Luciano scoring on a fielding error by Loge in left field.

North Dakota State’s Vanessa Anderson and pinch runner Courtney Johnson scored the final two runs of the championship game in the bottom of the fifth.

Turning Point
North Dakota State starting pitcher, Jacquelyn Sertic gave up her final hit in the second inning and retired the next 18 batters that she faced.

Inside The Box Score

IUPUI’s Alyssa Matson and NDSU’s Madyson Camacho are the only two who had a multi-hit game.
NDSU hit .364 compared to IUPUI hitting just .185 in the game.
First game of the 2017 Summit Softball Championship that a home run was not hit.
NDSU starting pitcher Jacquelyn Sertic struck out 7 Jaguars and earns her 18^th win of the season.

News & Notes

This is the second time NDSU has come from the losers bracket to win the Summit League Softball Championship, the last time in 2014 against Fort Wayne.
The eight tournament titles extend NDSU’s league record for championship crowns.
Junior, Bre Beatty was named tournament MVP.
IUPUI finishes second for the second consecutive year, the best championship finish in IUPUI program history.
The Bison have been in a championship game for nine consecutive seasons.

Up Next
No. 2 North Dakota State earns the league’s automatic bid into the 2017 NCAA Softball Championship. The NCAA Division I Selection Show will be Sunday, May 14 at 9:00 p.m. CT on ESPN2.