MINOT, ND – A dominant debut by pitcher Katie Newberry set the tone for the Beavers, then Minot State showed its resiliency late as the Beavers completed a doubleheader sweep of Montana State Billings Yellowjackets late Friday night in the opening day of the 2026 Bubble Invitational.
Newberry threw a 3-hitter in the season opener for the Beavers, who beat the Yellowjackets 9-1 in 5 innings to start the day.
Minot State (2-0 overall) then withstood a comeback by MSU Billings, which tied the nightcap 10-10, before a last at-bat rally helped the Beavers pull off the 12-10 win to complete the sweep.
Paige Kellogg led the offense with a pair of hits in each game, while Jessie Henry drove in 3 runs in the opener and Raivyn Millions had 3 RBIs in the nightcap to lead Minot State offensively.
Minot State continues play in the Bubble Invitational, hosting the Black Hills State Yellow Jackets in a doubleheader Saturday starting at 5 p.m.
GAME 1 | Minot State 9, Montana State Billings 1
MINOT, N.D. -- The Minot State Beavers took a 3-0 lead in the first inning and never surrendered the advantage on the way to a 9-1 victory over the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets on Friday.
Junior Katie Newberry (1-0) started in the circle and picked up the win for Minot State. The right-hander went five innings, giving up one run on three hits, allowing four walks and striking out five.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Beavers got on the board immediately, starting their scoring with three runs in the bottom of the first inning. Minot State pushed three runs across on sophomore Jessie Henry's bases-clearing triple.
The Beavers then held the Yellowjackets scoreless before getting back on the board the very next inning. Anna LaCount, Sarah Misner, and Sara Van Wickler each drove in a run, which brought the score to 6-0 in favor of the Beavers.
Minot State held Montana State Billings without a run before building their lead to 7-0 the following inning.
Minot State held the Yellowjackets scoreless before their offense got things rolling the next inning. The Beavers picked up two runs off of Montana State Billings pitching, punctuated by a run-scoring double off the bat of sophomore Brooke Hyde, bringing the Minot State advantage to 9-0. Montana State Billings put one run on the scoreboard before the game was over, but the Beavers still coasted to the 9-1 win.
GAME NOTES
» Newberry struck out five Yellowjackets hitters.
» Minot State grabbed a 3-0 lead in the bottom half of the first and didn't surrender that lead for the remainder of the game.
» The Beavers out-hit the Yellowjackets at a 9-3 clip.
» Minot State went 4-for-10 (.400) with runners in scoring position.
» The Beavers got two hits in four at-bats with the bases loaded.
» Minot State pitchers limited Montana State Billings to 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
» Minot State pitchers faced 21 Montana State Billings hitters in the game, allowing three ground balls and six fly balls while striking out five.
» The Beavers drew four walks from Montana State Billings pitching.
» Henry led the Beavers at the plate, going 2 for 3 with a triple and three RBIs.
GAME 2 | Minot State 12, Montana State-Billings 10
MINOT, N.D. -- The Minot State Beavers broke through after a 10-10 tie in the fifth inning to knock off the Montana State-Billings Yellowjackets 12-10 on Friday.
Sophomore Sarah Misner (1-0) got the win out of the bullpen for Minot State. The right-hander went two shutout innings, giving up one hit. Senior Calley Olson also pitched well, going 1.1 shutout innings without allowing a hit.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Trailing 2-0, the Beavers first put runs on the board in the first inning. Minot State's offense started clicking and put up six runs, including a two-run double off the bat of senior Raivyn Millions and a two-run single from junior Maizy Whitlow.
The Yellowjackets failed to push any runs across before the Beavers' offense got back to their scoring ways the next inning. Senior Sara Van Wickler came across to score the lone run of the inning for Minot State, which brought the Beavers' lead to 7-2.
Montana State Billings narrowed Minot State's lead to 7-4 before the Beavers stretched the advantage to 10-4 in the third inning. The Beavers scored three runs, all of them coming on a three-run homer off the bat of Van Wickler that scored Millions and senior Micaela Resler.
The Yellowjackets then tied the ballgame at 10 before Minot State fought back to reclaim their advantage in the sixth inning. The Beavers scored twice, with one run coming across on Millions' 1-out single, bringing the Minot State advantage to 12-10.
GAME NOTES
» Senior Mallory Hoogensen compiled three hits in the game for Minot State.
» Minot State's highest scoring inning was the first, when it pushed six runs across.
» Minot State took a 6-2 lead in the bottom half of the first and didn't surrender that lead for the remainder of the game.
» Five Beavers had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» The Beavers out-hit the Yellowjackets at a 13-8 clip.
» Minot State went 7-for-15 (.467) with runners in scoring position.
» The Beavers got two hits in five at-bats with the bases loaded.
» Minot State pitchers faced 33 Montana State Billings hitters in the game, allowing eight ground balls and nine fly balls while striking out two.
» The Beavers drew six walks from Montana State Billings pitching.
» Van Wickler led the Beavers at the plate, going 2 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs.
» Montana State Billings was led offensively by senior Alexis Tovar, who went 1 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs.
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