FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Wednesday, February 8, 2017 Dettling ties GNAC record, homers 3 times, earns win in CG
Megan Dettling hits three home runs, including a walk-off blast in the bottom of the seventh, and pitches a complete game in a 7-6 win for MSUB over UC Colorado Springs in Game 1 Wednesday, and the ‘Jackets fall 12-11 in Game 2. ST. GEORGE, Utah – Megan Dettling tied a Great Northwest Athletic Conference record and broke a school record for home runs in a game with three, one of which was a walk-off solo shot in the bottom of the seventh to give the Montana State University Billings softball team a dramatic 7-6 win over University of Colorado Colorado Springs on Wednesday at Canyons Softball Complex. The Yellowjackets dropped a heartbreaker against St. Edward’s University in Game 2 on Wednesday, falling 12-11 in the bottom of the seventh inning. MSUB moved to 2-7 overall on the year with the split. Dettling also threw a 151-pitch complete game in the circle, while driving in four runs in the opening game. “Megan threw a great game and kept us in it, and was clutch offensively with those three home runs,” Rayman commented on the junior who had six total RBIs in the doubleheader. “All-around, the battle and fight we showed in that game was
awesome. We are going to see some good California teams, and if we can put all aspects of our game together, it’s going to be a fun five games this weekend.” Game 1 – MSU Billings 7, UC Colorado Springs 6 Six of the Yellowjackets’ seven runs came by way of the long ball, as Katlyn Stringari added her first career home run to go along with Dettling’s three. It took a comeback effort from MSUB, which rallied to tie the score on two different occasions and didn’t lead until Dettling’s seventh-inning swing of the bat. The Cougars (0-1) jumped ahead with a two-run first inning, and put together nine hits and seven walks against Dettling. CCU pitcher Stephanie Chitkowski also threw a complete game, allowing 10 hits and three walks with five strikeouts. MSUB’s only run through the first four innings came on a solo home run by Dettling to lead off the second inning, and CCU grabbed a 5-1 lead with a three-run fourth inning. Claire Nibbe had a big two-out, two-run single that plated Melissa Martinek and Lexi Belligan, but MSUB senior Bella Rovens put a halt to the rally with a big play in center field. Chasing down Nibbe’s hit into the gap, Rovens fired a strike to Myrissa Prince at second to nail the runner trying to advance.
Junior Katlyn Stringari hit her first-ever home run in Game 1 on Wednesday.
The big defensive play carried over to the bottom of the fourth for the ‘Jackets, as Dettling drove in herself and Cameron Cassinelli with a tworun shot over the left-field fence. After an efficient, 1-2-3 top of the fifth, the ‘Jackets positioned themselves for a rally of their own.
With two runners on and just one out however, UCCS pulled off an inning-ending double play. The Cougars increased their lead to 6-4 with a run in the top of the sixth thanks to aggressive baserunning by Whitney Weber. After Dettling was pitched around to start the bottom of the sixth, Stringari was called upon in a pinch-hitting role and delivered one of the biggest hits of the day. The junior crushed her first-ever home run over the fence in left, tying the game at 6-6. It took a heads-up play from MSUB catcher Katie Jackson to keep the game tied in the seventh, as she scooped up a bunt with runners on second and third and put a tag on the oncoming Rayle Glover to cut down the run at the plate. Dettling followed by striking out Belligan looking to retire the side. With two outs and extra innings looming, Dettling tied Samantha Petrich of Central Washington (2010) and Bridjet Box of Western Oregon (2014) by lining her third home run of the game over the fence in right field. Game 2 – St. Edward’s 12, MSU Billings 11
MSUB broke a 10-10 tie with a run in the top of the seventh, as Rovens led off with a double and Prince plated her. The Hilltoppers pushed across a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame to steal away the win however, as Jinny Stricklin crossed home plate on a throw to second base. Freshman Maddy Lincoln turned in one of her finest performances of the season, allowing just four earned runs and one walk with three strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings pitched. “Maddy threw awesome for us, and she kept St. Edward’s off balance,” Rayman commented on Lincoln’s performance in Game 2. “She just kept fighting and focusing on getting the next hitter, and did a great job today.” Tracy and Devlin each had three hits in the game, and Prince drove in a team-high three runs for the ‘Jackets. Shelby Janda and Kayla Appleby each homered in a five-run first inning for SEU (4-3), and the ‘Toppers added two runs in the third and three in the fourth to take a 10-9 lead. An RBI-single by Tracy in the top of the fifth tied the score at 10-10, and Lincoln retired seven out of the next eight batters to put up zeroes into the final frame. Stringari had two more RBIs on a base hit in the five-run third inning, which directly followed a two-run single by Dettling and gave MSUB its first lead of the game up 6-5. Prince, Kelsey Devlin, and Cassinelli had RBIs in successive plate appearances in the next frame, as a three-run fourth once again gave the ‘Jackets the lead up 9-7. Sami Williams and Stricklin each had three hits for SEU, and Appleby led her team with four RBIs. All 11 of the Hilltoppers’ hits off Lincoln were singles, while the ‘Jackets managed three doubles among their 14 hits. Three pitchers split the workload in the circle for SEU, with Olivia Burdick throwing the final two innings and earning the win. Burdick allowed one run on three hits with a strikeout to finish the game, while Hannah Halepaska and Reagan Carter threw 2 1/3 and 2 2/3 innings, respectively. The Yellowjackets were hampered by four defensive errors in the second game, as only eight of the Hilltoppers’ 12 runs were earned. THE BUZZ: Dettling was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day…Dettling’s was the first walk-off home run since Prince achieved the feat on March 20, 2016 at home against Saint Martin’s…the previous school record for home runs in a game was two, held by many players including Devlin, Cassinelli, and Prince…MSUB is now 2-3 all-time against UCCS and has won the last two games. AHEAD: MSUB faces five opponents over the next three days, with doubleheaders on Thursday and Friday and a single game on Saturday. The ‘Jackets will take on Cal Baptist at 12:30 p.m. and Cal State San Bernardino at 3 p.m. Thursday afternoon at Canyons Softball Complex. Both games Thursday will feature live stats, available on www.msubsports.com. --@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--