Softball Explodes for 21-Run Game, Completes Sweep of South Dakota

The North Dakota State women traveled to Vermillion, South Dakota, this past weekend for a three-game conference series. A convincing weekend began on Friday afternoon with Jocelyn McClary taking the mound for the Bison vs. Evans Madison of South Dakota.

Both had solid starts, going the first two innings scoreless. The top of the third is where the Bison took off.

Senior shortstop Bella Dean cleared the bases with a three-run double to give the Bison a 3-0 lead. USD would respond in the bottom of the fourth with a sacrifice fly to make it 3-1.

Luckily for the Bison, Jocelyn McClary was dealing on the mound, and the Bison didn’t need a ton of run support from their hitters. Ella Clause would record an RBI single at the top of the seventh to make it a 4-1 game, and that’s what the final would be.

NDSU advanced to 17-18 overall and picked up its first conference win of the season thanks to a gem from Jocelyn McClary. She would go all seven innings and advance to 8-5 on the season and strike out six while allowing just four hits and one earned run.

The Bison took this momentum into Saturday afternoon versus the Coyotes and throttled them. It didn’t start that way, though, as USD would take a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first off of NDSU’s Madison Wihlm.

The Bison went on to score 21 unanswered, beginning with a seven-run frame in the top of the third. This continued in the fourth as Amai Hanta hit a solo home run to give the Bison an 8-2 lead.

Later that inning, catcher Jessia Delatorre hit a two-run shot, and the Bison busted this game wide open at 10-2. The Bison kept their foot on the gas pedal with a 10-run top of the fifth inning, and they would win in a run rule.

The Bison outhit the Coyotes 17-4, and USD committed three errors in the field as well. Madison Wihlm recovered from a tough first inning with four scoreless innings, getting the win and advancing to 7-6 on the season.

The Bison advanced to 18-18 on the season and look to sweep as they head into the final game of the series on Sunday. They wouldn’t get off to a hot start as USD got a two-run triple in the bottom of the first and took that lead through the second.

Lileigh Neito singled to left field to cut the lead down to 2-1 in the top of the third. USD responded with a three-run inning to take a 5-1 lead heading to the fourth.

It looked as if USD would run away and avoid the series sweep, but NDSU responded with a pair of two-run innings to take a 6-5 lead in the seventh, which included a Jessica Delatorre home run in the sixth.

NDSU tacked on three insurance runs in the seventh and took home a 10-5 win to sweep the series in Vermillion. The Bison now return home for a 3-game series with St. Thomas and a three-game series with Kansas City this week before heading to Grand Forks to take on the Fighting Hawks.