Blue Hawks keep rolling, move into NSAA championship game

DICKINSON, N.D.  – Dallis Mitchell pitched a complete game shutout Sunday afternoon as Dickinson State took control of the NSAA Softball Tournament.
 
The No. 3-seeded Blue Hawks defeated top seed Bellevue University 2-0 in the winner's bracket semifinal game. Mitchell allowed just five hits with some fantastic defensive plays behind her as the Blue Hawks put themselves in the tournament driver's seat.
 
Dickinson State (23-22) advances to Monday's NSAA Championship Game. The Blue Hawks will need to be beaten twice in the championship.
 
Bellevue University (31-19) drops into a loser-out game Sunday afternoon and will play at 3 p.m. MT against the winner of VCSU/Mayville State. The winner of the 3 p.m. game advances to the championship and must beat Dickinson State twice on Monday to claim the tournament title.
 
Monday's championship games are currently scheduled for 12 p.m. MT and 2 p.m. MT. Those start times may be moved up to avoid thunderstorms forecast for Monday afternoon.
 
Sunday's game was played in a 30 mile-per-hour wind which was blowing in from centerfield.
 
The Blue Hawks pushed across single runs in both the second and third inning to build and early 2-0 lead. Two singles and a hit batter loaded the bases in the second inning, and then HaiLeigh Davis drew a walk to score the game's first run.
 
In the third inning, Kiley Hubby hit a one-out double and then scored on Bailey Hansen's RBI single for a 2-0 Blue Hawk lead.
 
That's all the runs Mitchell and the Blue Hawk defense would need. She struck out six and scattered five hits over her seven shutout innings.
 
Katie Cunningham started in the circle for Bellevue and took the loss, giving up five hits and two runs over 2.1 innings. Savannah Gunn pitched 4.2 shutout innings in relief, allowing just two hits and striking out eight.
 
Bailey Hansen and HaiLeigh Davis each had two hits for Dickinson State, which totaled seven hits.