Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

ST. GEORGE, Utah.  – The Montana State University Billings Softball team started off 2014 with a win and a loss in their first double-header of the season.
 
In the first game, the Yellowjackets (1-1) defeated preseason ranked #23 Dixie State University 3-2, but then fell in the second game 7-11.
 
"We had a good first day that put us through several tests as a team," Head Coach Lisa Allen said.  "In game 1, Jessyka MacDonald and our defense worked out of a couple bases loaded situations."
 
Neither team had a run cross the plate in the first inning.  In the top of the second MSUB freshman Kelsey Devlin stepped up to the plated for her first collegiate at-bat, and sent a shot over the left field fence for the first home-run of her career. 
 
In the third inning, Bella Rovens sent a double to left center to bring in Cori Gammon.  Dixie State responded in the third with a run scored off a sacrifice hit to left taking the score to MSUB 2, Dixie 1.
 
In the fourth MSUB would get another run when Taylor Hoke would come in off a double by Katie Schermele.  Dixie State (1-1) would score a run in the fourth when another freshman, Brooklyn Beardshear, hit the first home-run of her collegiate career down the left field line.  But, that would be it as both teams held each other off in the final three innings of the game.
 
"Offensively we had several good hits, but had a couple of base running miscues that kept us to 3 runs," Coach Allen stated.
 
MacDonald picked up the win for the Yellowjackets.  MSUB had eight hits in the game, while limiting Dixie State to just three.
 
The second game featured a much different start.  In the first inning Emily Osborne would hit a single to left-center bringing in Gammon.  The Yellowjackets would then load the bases and a double by catcher Brittney Sanders would bring in three more runs to start the game MSUB up 4-0.
 
Dixie State would answer in the bottom of the first, scoring runs off of three hits and two errors by the Yellowjackets, taking the score to 7-4 in favor of the Red Storm. 
 
MSUB would add a run in the fifth, sixth, and seventh, but it wouldn't be enough as Dixie would add four more runs off of 12 game hits to get the win at 11-7.
 
Amanda Todd picked up the loss for the Yellowjackets.         
 
"In the second game we had to switch our defense and they needed to get comfortable which caused a seven-run first inning for Dixie," Coach Allen said. "The team did a good job of letting that inning go and continuing to battle on. They had a choice to give up or fight and they picked fight. We might have lost the game but our new defense got comfortable and our batters continued to hit the ball well with 10 hits for the game."
 
Cori Gammon led MSU Billings with three hits in the second game.  Sanders and Aubrey Conceicao both contributed a double.
 
Tonight Montana State University Billings will travel to Las Vegas, where tomorrow they will play a double-header against the University of Hawai'i at Hilo starting at 12 pm Pacific Time.
 
"The team is in a good place and I am eager to see them play again tomorrow against Hawaii Hilo," Coach Allen stated.
 
Live video and live stats for that game can be found at MSUBSports.com.