(DCC Athletics release)
GLENDIVE – After winning the Region XIII Championship for the fourth time in a row, Dawson Community College Softball will now move on to the District H Championship versus Des Moines Area Community College Thursday, May 10, 2018 in Boone, Iowa.
The championship will decided in a three-game series. Thursday’s Game 1 will start at 2 p.m. with the second game following at approximately 4 p.m. Game 3 will be played, if necessary, on Friday.
The Bears are currently nationally ranked No. 1 in NJCAA Division II with an overall record of 42-0. They recently won the Region XI Championship.
This will be Dawson Community College’s fourth straight year of playing in the District H Championship.
The winner of District H will advance to the NJCAA Division II National Tournament May 16-19 in Clinton, Miss.
Regional Recap
Dawson Community College Softball took home a 5-2 victory over Williston State College on Saturday. Hailee Gregerson was on the mound for Dawson allowing nine hits and two runs over seven innings, while striking out two.
Salgado started the game for Williston State College. She lasted four innings, allowing four hits and four runs while striking out three. Somerville and Salgado entered the game from the bullpen, throwing one inning and one inning respectively. Gregerson led the Lady Bucs with two hits in three at bats. Williston State totaled nine hits in the game. Salgado and Withouse each collected multiple hits for the Lady Tetons. Salgado went 3-for-4 at the plate to lead Williston in hits.
This NJCAA Region XIII Championship makes the fourth one in a row. Coach LeProwse stated that, “this feels good to win this one against Williston State on their home field. This is our fourth regional championship in a row and our fifth overall. This one was a true team win and we got contributions from a lot of players off of the bench to win this.”
Being undefeated in tournament play, Dawson’s first opponent was against Lake Region State College in shutout win. Hailee Gregerson threw a gem on Friday for Dawson Softball, allowing zero runs and besting Lake Region State College by a score of 8-0. Dawson secured the victory thanks to six runs in the fifth inning.
Reannon Justice, Kylee Hergenrider, and Jordyn O’Neal all drove in runs in the frame. Lady Bucs got things started in the first inning when Lexi Pettersen singled on the first pitch of the at bat, scoring one run. Dawson scored six runs in the fifth inning. Justice, Hergenrider, and O’Neal each had RBIs in the big inning.
One bright spot for Lake Region State was a double by Willis-Wildman in the third inning. Gregerson got the start for the Lady Bucs. She went five innings, allowing zero runs on three hits, striking out three and walking one. Stewart was on the mound for Lake Region State College. She surrendered eight runs on seven hits over four and two-thirds innings, striking out seven.
Trinity Anderson led Dawson with two hits in four at bats. Dawson was sure-handed in the field and didn’t commit a single error. Jayden Draper had the most chances in the field with four. Coach LeProwse said, “I was pleased with the way his team executed in this game. We did a great job of getting runners in scoring position and driving them in when we had the chances. This was a great way to start the Region 13 tournament for us.”
Dawson went on to play Dakota County Technical College in the second game later in the day. Dawson took their game in dramatic walk-off fashion, thanks to a walk-off single at the end of the game to topple Dakota County Tech. The game was tied at three with DCC batting in the bottom of the seventh when Reannon Justice singled on a 2-1 count, scoring one run. Dakota County Technical scored three runs in the seventh inning, but Dawson still managed to pull out the victory. Garcia and Lasso all contributed in the big inning with RBIs.
Lady Bucs got things moving in the first inning. An error scored one run for Dawson. Hailee Gregerson led things off on the hill for Dawson. She lasted seven innings, allowing ten hits and three runs while striking out two. Thurow led things off on the hill for Dakota County. She allowed six hits and four runs over six and a third innings, striking out four. Justice went 2-for-4 at the plate to lead the Lady Bucs in hits. Dakota County Technical saw the ball well today, racking up ten hits in the game. Garcia, Evenson, and King each managed multiple hits for Dakota County.
Coach LeProwse had this to say about his team, “We had the lead the entire game in this one until the 7th inning. Hailee was getting a little tired in the 7th and DCTC strung together some hits and tied the game. Hailee is a competitor and dug deep to limit the damage and got us out of the inning by getting two girls to pop up with bases loaded. Wynia Mintz did a great job of getting the bottom of the 7th started by hitting a line drive up the middle with one out. She advanced to second on a wild pitch and Reannon Justice drove her in on a single up the middle to win it in walk off fashion. This was a great win for us as a team.”
