Sagan Osborne – Dickinson State Sports and Marketing Information Director
Tucson, Ariz. – Dickinson State wrapped up a challenging day at the Tucson Invitational, going 1-2 with a shutout loss to Northwestern, a late-inning defeat to OUAZ, and a comeback win over Concordia (Mich.). The Blue Hawks struggled offensively in the opener, let a lead slip away in the second game, but rebounded with a strong late-inning performance to close out the day on a high note.
Northwestern (Iowa) shut out Dickinson State 9-0 in five innings at the Tucson Invitational. The Blue Hawks struggled to find offense against a dominant pitching performance and were unable to recover from a seven-run second inning.
Northwestern opened the scoring with a two-run single by Jori Hajek. A hit-by-pitch and an RBI groundout added two more. Charli Bomgaars and Tatum Schmalbeck followed with run-scoring hits to push the lead to 7-0.
Dickinson State's offense never gained traction, with only Brooke Lijewski and Jai Maddox-Hernandez recording hits. Alison Eldridge took the loss, allowing seven runs—only one earned—on five hits in 1 2/3 innings. Reannan Butler pitched 3 1/3 innings in relief, giving up two earned runs.
Looking to rebound, Dickinson State held a late lead against OUAZ but fell 8-6 after a five-run sixth inning. The Blue Hawks led 6-2 after four innings, but the Spirit rallied with six runs over the final two frames.
Dickinson State struck first when Celina Wilharm scored on an error in the first inning. After OUAZ took a 2-1 lead in the third, the Blue Hawks responded with a five-run fourth. Jessa Duggan stole home, and Karissa Comer reached on an error to score another. Cassidy Venner singled in a run before Allyson Farrington drove in two with a double to cap the inning.
OUAZ responded in the sixth with a two-run single from Shine, followed by two more runs on a Sutton base hit. A single in the seventh added insurance as the Spirit completed the comeback. Ava Jahner took the loss, allowing three earned runs in 1/3 of an inning. Reannan Butler finished the game, surrendering one run over 1 2/3 innings.
In the final game of the stretch, Dickinson State edged Concordia (Mich.) 5-4 behind a three-run sixth inning and solid relief pitching from Jahner. The Blue Hawks trailed 4-1 before rallying late.
Baylee Berg opened the scoring with a solo home run in the second, but Concordia responded with a two-run third and solo home runs in the fourth and fifth. Dickinson State's comeback began when Wilharm singled home Farrington in the sixth. Lijewski followed with an RBI triple before Bailey Hansen tied the game with an RBI single.
In the seventh, Jersi Morse reached on an error and scored on HaiLeigh Davis' single down the left-field line. Jahner, who entered in the fifth, retired the side in order to secure the win. She allowed two hits in 2 1/3 shutout innings, improving to 4-1 on the season.
