Jackets offense sparks RCTC to two wins at MCAC Crossover

Game One

RCTC 11, Minnesota North College–Itasca 3

A lesson in patience, pressure, and poise

The opening matchup against Minnesota North College–Itasca arrived with little time for ceremony. Both teams warmed quickly, the chill in the dome didn't slow down the Jacket bats. RCTC entrusted the circle to Zoey Clark, while Itasca leaned on Addison Linder, an accomplished two‑way player whose bat and arm both demanded respect.

The first inning alone promised drama.

A jolt, then a response

Itasca struck first, with one swing, Addison Linder's 2-run homerun.

But if RCTC flinched, it didn't show.

Ella Bergan reached base, as she would repeatedly throughout the day, setting the tone with her speed and patience. Soon after, Cason Forbrook lashed a double to right field, scoring Bergan and cutting the deficit in half. Then came the defining trait of this first contest: pressure through patience.

Linder struggled with control. Walks mounted. Hit batters piled up. RCTC didn't chase.

Gigi Lundi, Keiara Daniel, and Holly Flom each absorbed hit‑by‑pitches that forced home runs. Mendoza, Clark, and Bergan kept moving, forcing Itasca's defense into hurried decisions.

When the inning finally ended, RCTC had scored four times—without the benefit of a single hit after Forbrook's double.

The scoreboard read 4–2. Momentum had flipped.

Clark settles in

Zoey Clark responded the way experienced pitchers do: by simplifying.

After surrendering the early home run, Clark methodically dismantled Itasca's lineup. Mixing location and tempo, she induced weak contact and piled up strikeouts, finishing with seven over six innings. Only once more would Minnesota North score, on Bella Dunham's RBI double in the fourth.

But Clark never wavered. She worked efficiently—just 91 pitches, 67 strikes—and allowed her defense to breathe.

Behind her, the RCTC offense kept grinding.

Breaking it open

The fifth inning became the separator.

With Bergan and Knudson aboard, Jayda Bednarek delivered the game's most decisive swing: a two‑run single to center. Suddenly, a slim lead ballooned into a three‑run cushion. Moments later, Clark helped her own cause, doubling to left to score Bednarek and Forbrook.

By the end of the inning, it was 8–3.

The sixth provided the exclamation point.

Capitalizing on an error, steals, and relentless base pressure, RCTC tacked on three more. Bednarek drove in another run with a double. Forbrook added an RBI single. Bergan crossed the plate again—her third run of the game.

When the final out settled into Flom's glove, the message was clear: RCTC had not simply beaten Minnesota North. They had broken them down, inning by inning.

Clark earned the win. Bednarek finished with three RBIs. Bergan scored three times and stole three bases. And perhaps most tellingly, RCTC scored 11 runs on just seven hits—the mark of a disciplined, opportunistic offense.

But the day was far from over.

Game Two

RCTC 16, Northland Community & Technical College 11

Fifteen unanswered runs...

If the first game showcased composure, the second tested something deeper: belief.

Northland came out swinging like a team determined not to let the host dictate terms. By the end of the first inning, RCTC trailed 5–0. By the end of the second, it was 7–0. And when Northland added four more in the third, the scoreboard was brutal:

Northland 11, RCTC 1

But Rochester didn't fold.

Holding the line

After Alyssa Knudson battled through the early innings, Zoey Clark returned to the circle—less than an hour after completing a six‑inning win. She didn't overpower Northland, but she stabilized the game.

From the third inning on, Clark allowed just four runs. More importantly, she stopped the bleeding long enough for the bats to do something extraordinary.

And they did.

The spark

It began quietly in the third.

A defensive error opened the door. Gigi Lundi followed with a two‑run homer to center—an unearned blast technically, but emotionally seismic. Suddenly, the dugout stirred.

In the fourth, Zoey Clark helped again—this time with her bat. She crushed a leadoff homer, her first of the day, cutting the deficit. KK Hemming doubled in two more. Ivette Mendoza followed with an RBI double. Then chaos.

Lundi stole second. Mendoza scored. Bergan singled. Another run crossed.

The inning ended with RCTC down just two: 11–9.

What once seemed impossible was now inevitable.

The decisive avalanche

The fifth inning sealed it.

Patient at‑bats. Smart baserunning. Fresh pressure on a Northland bullpen stretched thin.

Gigi Lundi walked with the bases loaded. Holly Flom ripped a two‑run single. Bergan followed with yet another RBI hit. Then Clark doubled—scoring two more.

In one inning, RCTC scored six runs.

By the time Mendoza added an RBI single in the sixth, the score stood at 16–11. Northland never threatened again.

Zoey Clark earned her second win of the day—throwing a combined 11.1 innings and driving in five runs with two extra‑base hits and a homer. Gigi Lundi finished with four runs scored and a home run. Mendoza drove in three. Hemming added two more.

From 11–1 down to 16–11 winners. The Jackets will be right back in the dome on Saturday with a pair of contests starting at 9:00am