Box Score

CLERMONT, Fla. - A day after Bethel came up on the short end of each of their three games, the Royals returned to the field to turn things around and started off on the right foot by defeating Buffalo State College 2-1 at the National Training Center.

Bethel broke a scoreless tie in the third inning by scoring, giving them a 1-0 lead.  With one out, Karina Roe (Jr., Grey Eagle, Minn.) singled, followed by a Michelle Wilson (Fr., Anoka, Minn.) single.  Tonia Erickson (So., Welcome, Minn.) advanced both Roe and Wilson with a sacrifice bunt, followed by a walk to All-MIAC catcher Molly Trombley (Sr., Stacy, Minn.).  Roe then scored on a wild pitch by Bengals pitcher Jenna Frieling for the first run of the game.

Buffalo State answered with a run of their own in the bottom half of the third inning, returning the game to a tie.

Two more scoreless innings passed until Bethel scored the winning run in the sixth.  Trombley led off the inning with a double, then advanced to third thanks to a bunt by captain Laura Naig (Sr., Kasson, Minn.).  Trombley then came in to score after a passed ball to give Bethel all they would need for the victory.

Charitey Rowden (So., Shellsburg, Iowa) threw a complete game, allowing one run on six hits.  She struck out three of the 33 batters she faced, helping her improve to 2-1 on the season.

In addition to Trombley, Lisa Patnode (So., Princeton, Minn.) also had two hits for the Royals.

Bethel improves to 3-3 overall with the win, while Buffalo State falls to 0-2.  Bethel will face Morrisville State University this afternoon in a doubleheader for their next games.