May 1, 2026
DICKINSON, N.D. - Top-seed Dickinson State (N.D.) erased an early five-run deficit and defeated fourth-seed Bismarck State (N.D.) 10-6 in the winner’s bracket of the 2026 Frontier Conference Softball Championship on Friday at Bravera Field. The Blue Hawks (38-12 overall record) ballooned their winning streak to 22 games and moved one game closer to Sunday's championship game.
Bismarck State (19-31 overall record) seized control in the top of the first inning, scoring five times on a string of run-producing hits. Brielle Wrangham doubled home a run, Leah Rolland followed with a two-run double, and Lexi Wesson added a two-run single as Bismarck built a 5-0 lead.
The Blue Hawks answered in the bottom half when Kiley Hubby delivered an RBI double, a hit that helped push Bismarck starter Reagan King out of the game and cut the margin to 5-1.
Dickinson State kept chipping away in the second and then flipped the game in the third. In the second, Celina Wilharm came around to score and Allyson Farrington’s double helped spark a three-run inning. Izzy Kelly then reached on an error that brought home another run, trimming the deficit to one.
The Blue Hawks took the lead for good with three more runs in the third, with Farrington and Kelly, who tripled, helping produce a 7-5 advantage.
Farrington stayed in the middle of the comeback by driving in another run with a single in the fourth, extending DiSU’s lead to 8-5.
BSC answered with a run in the fifth on Jada Walter’s single to get within 8-6, but DiSU responded again in the sixth. Wilharm tripled during the two-run inning, and Brooke Lijewski added a solo home run to stretch the lead to four.
Dickinson State finished with 11 hits, including three doubles, two triples and a home run, while leaving only four runners on base. Farrington went 2 for 2 with two RBIs and two runs scored, Kelly had two hits with two RBIs and a triple, and Lijewski supplied the late homer.
Wilharm also played a key role in the offense, scoring during the second-inning rally and tripling in the sixth.
Bismarck State totaled nine hits. Rolland had two hits and a double, and the Mystics got early production from Wrangham, Rolland, Grace Grimm and Wesson in the opening burst.
After the rough first inning, Dickinson State pitcher Reannan Butler (W, 6-5) settled in and worked a complete game for the win. Butler went seven innings, allowing six hits and three runs, two earned, according to the game summary, and Dickinson State survived three errors behind her. Bismarck State finished with six runs on nine hits and two errors.
Bismarck State heads to the loser's bracket as they face No. 6 seed Bellevue (Neb.) at 5 p.m. (MT) Friday.
Dickinson State will play the winner of Valley City State (N.D.)-Providence (Mont.) Saturday at 1 p.m. (MT).