BAINBRIDGE ISLAND — Aggressive hitting by a strong NK lineup and shaky defensive play by the Spartans allowed the Vikings to score seven runs in the first three innings of play, as NK beat Bainbridge by a count of 7-3.

“The bottom line is that our kids again showed the ability to close the door,” said fastpitch coach Dan Kolda of Wednesday’s game. “The goal right now is to put the ball in play and keep pressure on the defense.”

The Vikings struck quickly in the top of the first, with Rachel Kramer leading off with a single. A Spartan error on a sacrifice bunt put runners on first and second, and another sacrifice bunt moved the runners up.

Heather Case drove in the first run with a hard single off Jamie Callaham’s glove at third and a second run scored on an errant throw by shortstop Logan Mohr that hit the runner in the back.

After a wild pitch and a walk put runners on first and third, an extra effort defensive play by the Spartans on an attempted double steal resulted in the trailing runner being thrown out while holding the lead runner on third. Koller struck out the next batter to end the threat.

The Spartans answered by tying the score in the bottom of the first inning.

Alexis Hujar reached first base on an error, went to second on a wild pitch and scored on a single by Callaham.

A Mohr sacrifice bunt moved Callaham to second and a single by Carrie Parsons scored the senior.

NK came right back with two runs in the second, both scoring on a two out throwing error. A single, a walk and two wild pitches put the runners in scoring position.

North extended their lead in the third, with Case leading off with a single. She then went to second on a sacrifice. A walk and a single brought Case home and left runners on first and third.

This time, the double steal worked and another single brought home North’s final run.

The Spartan offense went dormant the rest of the way, failing to garner another hit through the sixth inning.

Bainbridge tried to make it interesting in the bottom of the seventh, loading the bases with nobody out. Hujar grounded back to the pitcher, resulting in a force out at the plate. A single by Callaham brought in a run, but Mohr grounded to third, resulting in another force out at the plate. A full count called strike ended both the Spartan threat and the game.

North Kitsap (2-0) will host South Kitsap at 3:30 p.m. March 22 at NK fields.