FARGO, N.D.—South Dakota defeated South Dakota State 18-7 to advance to the second day of the Summit League Softball Tournament at Ellig Sports Complex. The Coyotes (27-24-1) will take on the loser of North Dakota State and IUPUI at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in an elimination game. South Dakota will have to win twice Saturday to get into a winner-take-all final.
South Dakota center fielder Katie Dinning recorded the program's first five-hit game on record as part of a record-breaking day. Dinning homered twice against the Jacks and scored six runs in two games Friday to become the first Coyote and second player in Summit League history to score 60 runs in a single season.
Dinning was 5-for-5 against South Dakota State and 7-for-9 on the day. She moved into fifth place on the Summit's all-time hit list (238) and into sixth place on the league's all-time runs list (145).
Sisters Morgan and Sydney Hancock both homered during a nine-run third inning against SDSU. Sydney hit a grand slam that gave the Coyotes a 7-5 lead. Morgan added a three-run shot – her third home run of the day – that made it 11-5. Morgan drove in nine runs with her three homers Friday.
South Dakota tacked on six runs in the top of the seventh for good measure as Shelby Keil had a two-run single and Matley Jones added a two-run double. It was the Coyotes' fourth win against the Jacks in the last week and this one eliminated their rivals. It was also the third time this season South Dakota has scored at least 18 runs in a single game.
IUPUI 11, South Dakota 9
IUPUI sent South Dakota into the elimination game against South Dakota State after scoring seven times in the top of the seventh inning to turn a five-run deficit into an 11-9 lead. A grand slam by Sarah Lawrence – her second home run of the season – completed the comeback.
Morgan Hancock hit a grand slam that gave South Dakota a 5-1 lead in the first inning and knocked out IUPUI starter Brooke Boetjer after just five batters. Hancock hit a two-run homer in the fourth inning that gave South Dakota an 8-4 lead. Allie Daly's RBI double in the sixth made it 9-4.
Daly had two hits in both games and extended her hitting streak to 19 games – the longest on record at South Dakota. She raised her batting average to .405, giving the Coyotes three hitters who are currently batting above .400 this season.
Daly and Jones have 59 and 58 RBIs, respectively, to lead the Summit League. The league's single-season record is 60 set by Fort Wayne's Dani Pugh last season. The Coyotes' record is 63 set by Tiffany Davis in 2001.
