NORTH MANKATO - Kathryn Miska pitched two complete games Thursday to lead the fourth-ranked Pequot Lakes to Friday's Class 2A state championship game.
The Patriot senior struck out a total of 26 batters and helped her cause by going 2-for-3 at the plate in each game as Pequot beat No. 2 ranked Pipestone 5-1 in Thursday's Class 2A state quarterfinals at Caswell Park and followed with a 2-1 win over the Rockford Rockets in the semifinals.
"We played outstanding softball today," said Pequot Lakes head coach Brett Sergent. "Kathryn pitched extremely well, we put together some timely hits and our defensive game came through in the clutch. It was really great."
Pequot plays top-ranked Zumbrota-Mazeppa 2 p.m. Friday at Caswell Park for the state championship.
"We were the underdogs all day today," said Sergent. "It wasn't that way all year for us, and we'll be the underdogs again on Friday, but that's OK."
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In the Patriots' only other state appearance in 2013, they lost 4-1 to Hermantown in the quarterfinals and lost 11-0 in six innings to St. Anthony Village in the consolation bracket.
Semifinals:
Pequot Lakes 2, Rockford 1
Miska struck out 11 while walking four and allowed just two hits in the 2-1 semifinal win over Rockford.
Alex Kotaska hit a solo homer in the first inning for Pequot Lakes, and Haley Wiebolt hit a run-scoring single, following a Barbara Miller double, in the third.
Rockford scored in the fifth inning when Anya Cady singled and came around the bases on three wild pitches.
Semifinals
Pequot Lakes 2 6 2
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Rockford 1 2 1
WP: Kathryn Miska. LP: Bria Majeski. 2B: PL-Barbara Miller. HR: PL-Alex Kotaska. Overall: PL 25-2. Next: Pequot Lakes vs. Zumbrota-Mazeppa in championship game of Class 2A state tournament at Caswell Park, North Mankato.
Quarterfinals:
Pequot Lakes 5, Pipestone 1
Miska struck out 15 and allowed one hit and three walks to lead fourth-ranked Pequot Lakes to a 5-1 victory over No. 2 ranked Pipestone in the quarterfinals.
The senior pitcher also finished 2-for-3 with a solo home run to put Pequot ahead 1-0 in the second.
That score stood until the top of the seventh. Laura Squires reached on a fielder's choice and Miska singled to left. Karlie Trottier's single scored Squires and then Jessica Faacks smashed a three-run bomb to left for a 5-0 Patriots advantage.
Pipestone picked up its lone run in the bottom of the seventh before Miska struck out the final two batters, with the last one swinging, to secure Pequot's first state softball win.
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Quarterfinals
Pequot Lakes 5 7 1
Pipestone 1 1 0
WP: Kathryn Miska. LP: Shelby Bloemendaal. 2B: Pipe-Taryn Woelber. HR: PL-Miska, Jessica Faacks.
