May 28—The wind blew, records were set, the Eastern AA completed a first-day sweep.
Thursday certainly didn’t go as planned for the Glacier Wolfpack, one of four Western AA teams that fell in first-round action at the State AA softball tournament at Kidsport.
The Billings Senior Broncs used a misplay-filled, 6-run second inning and Kennedy Venner’s pitching to thwart Glacier 8-4; on the adjacent field Billings West dispatched Helena High 9-4.
In Thursday’s early games Belgrade edged Helena Capital 3-2 in a defensive battle, while on the other field Great Falls hit eight home runs in a 14-8 defeat of Missoula Sentinel.
According to the Montana High School Association website the record for homers in a game was six, by Great Falls twice in 2016. The Bison had seven by the sixth inning.
Another record now belongs outright to Glacier’s Kenna Vanorny, who scored her 57th run of the season in epic fashion, with an inside the park home run.
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Glacier third baseman Avery Anderson (16) fires to first base against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier shortstop Sammie Labrum (10) fires to first base against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier’s Teagan Powell (18) connects on a two-run single in the second inning against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier second baseman Kenadie Goudette (20) throws to first after fielding a ground ball against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier’s Kenna Vanorny (5) connects on an inside-the-park home run in the third inning against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier’s Kenadie Goudette (20) dives back into first base ahead of the tag against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier pitcher Ella Farrell (12) delivers against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier’s Kynzie Mohl (1) connects on a solo home run in the third inning against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
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Glacier shortstop Sammie Labrum (10) fires to first base against Billings Senior during the first round of the State Class AA Softball Tournament at Kidsports Complex on Thursday. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Billings Senior 8, Glacier 4
There were highlights: After Vanorny hit her inside-the-parker in the third inning, Kynzie Mohl followed with her 17th homer of the season, a solo shot.
Added to Teagan Powell’s 2-run single in the second, Glacier had cut the gap to 8-4. But the Pack got no closer as Venner struck out seven and retired 15 of the last 17 batters she faced.
Of the two to get on base was Kynzie Mohl, who was intentionally walked with two out and nobody on in the fifth.
“At no point in that game did I think we were out of it,” Glacier coach Abby Connolly said. “We’re a competitive team, we could’ve come back. But they’re a great team, they played small ball really well, made us make errors.
“We just kind of beat ourselves a little bit, which is probably the most disappointing.”
Mohl started at pitcher and was a bit wild, giving up three walks and two hits — one being a bunt single in the first — while hitting a batter and uncorking three wild pitches.
All of this hadn’t really hurt until she fielded Venner’s bases-loaded grounder and threw home for the force. It got past Halle Schroeder for an error, one of three by Glacier in the inning, and two runs scored to put Senior up 3-0.
Then came a couple wild pitches and then, after a walk reloaded the bases, a 2-run single by Dacee Zent. Now it was 7-0, and Ella Farrell came in to pitch.
The freshman threw well, giving up one run on Kara Conway’s bloop double in the third, and fanned seven in six innings, with one walk. But after Mohl’s homer, Glacier’s offense slumbered, leaving the Pack with a loser-out game at noon today against Helena.
“Come back and tear up the loser’s bracket tomorrow is all we can do,” Connolly said.
Venner scattered four hits and two walks and hit one batter, Mohl, who was cut down trying to steal second in the first inning.
Billings Senior 161 000 0 — 8 7 1
Glacier 022 000 0 — 4 4 3
Kennedy Venner and Hollis Baker. Kynzie Mohl, Ella Farrell (2) and Halle Schroeder, Mohl (2).
BILLING SENIOR — Isabelle Dillon 1-3, Venner 0-3, Kara Conway 1-2, Dacee Zent 3-4, Hollis Baker 0-4, Paige Opp 0-4, Alexis Waddingham 1-3, Darby Mayo 2-4, Vianca Martin 0-3.
GLACIER — Kenna Vanorny 1-4, Mohl 1-1, Sammie Labrum 0-3, Kenadie Goudette 0-2, Farrell 1-3, Schroeder 0-3, Emma Cooke 0-3, Teagan Powell 1-3, Allie Kernan 0-3.
2B — Conway. HR — Vanorny, Mohl. RBI — Zent 3, Conway, Powell 2, Vanorny, Mohl.
Billings West 9, Helena 4
Marleigh Nieto hit a two-run homer and Ashley Wik followed with a solo shot to start the Golden Bears’ five-run fourth inning.
Emma Balsam had an RBI single and Chloe Nelson an RBI double in the Bears’ 3-run ninth.
Avery Martin had a homer among her three hits, and Alison Eldridge scattered 11 hits and a walk, and struck out three in the circle for West.
Helena 100 110 1 — 4 11 0
B. West 010 503 x — 9 17 2
Alyssa Koenig, Faith Manibusan (4) and Amber Countryman. Alison Eldridge and M Matthews.
HELENA — Countryman 1-4, Reegan Walsh 2-4, Brooke Ark 1-4, Richardson 2-3, Makenna Campbell 0-0, Koenig 0-4, Manibusan 1-3, Kylee Wetzel 2-3, Ashlyn Lamping 1-3, Maloree English 1-3.
BILLINGS WEST — Marleigh Niete 1-4, Ashley Wik 2-3, Emma Balsam 2-4, Lauren Blaschak 2-4, Avery Martin 3-4, Matthews 2-4, Chloe Nelson 4-4, Halle Spring 1-3, Morgan Stoppel 0-3, Jillian Johnson 0-0.
2B — Walsh, Lamping, Manibusan, Richardson, Nelson 2. HR — Wik, Martin, Nieto. RBI — Richardson, Koenig, Lamping, Nieto 2, Martin 2, Matthews 2, Nelson 2, Wik.
Belgrade 3, Helena Capital 2
The Panthers broke a 2-2 tie when Arin Eaton led off the sixth with a triple, and came in on Shaylis Osler’s single in the sixth inning. Osler also had an RBI single in Belgrade’s 2-run fourth.
Capital had drawn even on Taylor Sayers’ RBI single in the sixth, and was looking for more when Belgrade’s defense came through: Center fielder Kamie Gorrell tracked down a shot by Kathryn Emmert and then doubled a runner of second (she’d left early); Amanda Nettleson’s ensuing line drive was snared by Osler at first.
Capital 010 001 0 — 2 4 3
Belgrade 000 201 x — 3 3 2
Nyeala Herndon and Taylor Sayers. Arin Eaton, Tayler Thomas (6) and
CAPITAL — Anna Cockhill 1-2, Jaedyn Kent 1-3, Jenna Priddy 0-2, Sayers 0-3, Kathryn Emmert, Amanda Nettleton 0-2, Herndon 1-3, Mackenzie Siegers 0-3, Lexi McNew 0-3, Rylee Solan 0-0.
BELGRADE — Tyclee Bowler 0-3, Kamie Gorrell 0-2, Kenna Thomas 0-3, Maddie Thomasetti 1-2, T.Thomas 0-2, Eaton 0-2, Shaylis Osler 1-2, Elizabeth Ybarra 1-3, Khloey Robinson 0-2, Abbie Morin 0-0, Madi Johnson 0-0.
HR — Herndon. RBI — Herndon, Osler 2.
Great Falls 14, Sentinel 8
Stephanie Jablonski followed an RBI double by Alex Blooomgren with her second home run in two innings, a 2-run shot, as Great Falls broke away from a 2-2 tie in the third.
At that point Sentinel went to Montana Grizzlies’ signee Grace Hardy in the circle, but after she fanned Dani Senger to end that inning, the Bison touched her for home runs by Ella Galloway, Ashlyn Jones and Morgan Sunchild in the fourth.
Sentinel closed to 8-4 with Hardy’s 2-run shot in the fifth, but Great Falls countered with Ryan Palmer’s second homer — she’d led off the game with a solo shot — and Bloomgren’s 2-run blast in the top of the sixth.
That brought Hoover back to the circle, and Sunchild hit a 3-run shot off her in the seventh.
Sunchild went the distance on the hill for the Bison, and gave up Hardy’s second home run and a solo shot to Addy Gaub in the seventh.
Sunchild scattered seven hits and three walks and struck out four.
Great Falls 113 303 3 — 14 13 4
Sentinel 110 020 4 — 8 7 1
Morgan Sunchlld and Alex Bloomgren. Charlee Hoover, Grace Hardy (2), Hoover (6) and Emma Ries, Cassidy Schweitzer (5).
GREAT FALLS — Ryen Palmer 2-3, Ashlyn Jones 1-5, Sunchild 3-5, Bloomgren 2-5, Stephanie Jablonski 2-3, Tehneson Ehnes 1-3, Dani Senger 0-4, Emma Newmack 1-3, Ella Galloway 1-4.
SENTINEL — Hardy 2-3, Haley Wolsky 0-4, Kenna Kay 0-3, Stella Summerfield 0-0, Kodi Fraser 1-3, Addy Gaub 2-4, Amy Taylor 2-4, Emma Ries 0-3, Cassidy Schweitzer 0-0, Morgan Holmes 0-3, Mac Wright 0-2.
2B — Bloomgren, Taylor. 3B — Palmer, Ehnes, Fraser. HR — Palmer 2, Jablonski 2, Sunchild 2, Galloway, Jones, Hardy 2, Gaub. RBI — Sunchild 4, Jablonski 3, Palmer 2, Galloway, Bloomgren, Jones, Hardy 3, Gaub 2, Summerfield, Fraser.