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WATERTOWN, S.D. -- The top-seeded Bellevue University softball team won a pair of contests on Thursday to open play at the 2022 North Star Athletic Association Softball Tournament being played at the Premier Softball Complex. 

BU advanced to the final of the winner's bracket with a 3-0 win over No. 8 Viterbo University in the opener followed by a 4-1 victory over No. 5 Mayville State in the nightcap. 

Bellevue improved to 40-11 on the season and extended its winning streak to 16 games.  

The Bruins will play second-seeded Valley City State on Friday in a winner's bracket contest at 2 p.m. VCSU defeated Presentation, 9-1, in five innings, and Dakota State, 14-6, also in five innings. 

With the win over Viterbo, head coach Michala Cimino became the school's all-time leader in wins. Cimino, who is in her 13th season at BU, now owns a 473-214-1 career record. She surpassed Ed Lehotak, who compiled a 471-222 record from 1997 to 2009. 

Bellevue 3, Viterbo 0

After five scoreless innings, BU tallied three runs on five hits in the sixth inning en route to the 3-0 shutout victory over the V-Hawks in the opener. Freshman Katie Cunningham tossed a complete-game four-hit shutout to earn her 14th victory of the season. 

The Bruins did not produce a hit until the bottom of the fifth inning when Cunningham doubled to left field, but V-Hawk starter Ella Driebel induced three-straight infield groundouts to keep the game scoreless heading into the top of the sixth frame.  

After consecutive singles by Reese Floro and Liana McMurtry, the Bruins got on the board with a two-run double to right field by Ashley Young, giving BU a 2-0 advantage in the bottom of the sixth inning. Cunningham drove in Young with a double to center field to extend the margin to 3-0. 

Cunningham retired the side in the top of the seventh to secure the victory, improving to 14-6 on the season. She allowed just four hits with no walks and eight strikeouts in seven innings of work. Cunningham went 2-for-3 at the plate with two doubles and a pair of RBIs to lead the BU offense as well. 

Driebel suffered the loss, giving up three runs on six hits with one walk and two strikeouts in six innings in the circle.  

Bellevue 4, Mayville State 1

Cunningham picked up her second victory of the day and BU outhit MSU, 11-3, en route to the 4-1 victory in the nightcap. 

An RBI single to left field by Lauren Jurek gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning. 

The Bruins extended the advantage to 3-0 in the bottom of the fifth inning on an RBI double to center field by Young and on a run-scoring single to right field by Allison O'Driscoll. that plated Young from third. 

The Comets sliced the lead to 3-1 in the top of the sixth inning with an RBI single up the middle by Jocelyn Ontiveros that scored Mackenzie Hughes.

Bellevue added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth with an RBI single to center field by Floro, pushing the advantage to 4-1. 

Cunningham (15-6) retired the final three batters to earn her 15th win of the season. She scattered three hits with one walk and two strikeouts in seven innings of work.