Championship comeback

For the first time ever softball teams in the west had a chance to prove their worth on the field before heading to state and it was Thompson Falls who came out on top bouncing back from a rough start to defeat Loyola 7-3 to be crowned Western B-C champs.

For the first time ever softball teams in the west had a chance to prove their worth on the field before heading to state and it was Thompson Falls who came out on top bouncing back from a rough start to defeat Loyola 7-3 to be crowned Western B-C champs.

It didn't look good early for the home team after going down in order in the top of the inning; Loyola sent two across the plate in the bottom of the inning due to an overthrow and an error.

However, for how rattled they looked in the first inning, they looked all the more composed as they game grew on, shutting down the Loyola offense and finally breaking through in the fourth inning when Kelsey Fitchett ripped a single into the outfield with the bases loaded tieing the score at two.

The Ladyhawks then took the lead on the very next batter as Kayla Stark hit a one-run double and Karli Cavill hit a sacrifice bunt for a 4-2 lead with which they never relinquished.

"The character of this team has shown all year long and I knew that our defense was strong and that we should be able to hold them to that point (two runs after the first inning) and that our bats would come alive," says Coach Randy Pirker.

The character was most evident from pitcher Kyla Molzhon who stifled the Loyola offense after the first inning striking out nine and from Fitchett who started the offense.

"That's pretty good composure for a freshman. She stood in there and she's what actually broke it loose," says Coach Pirker.

For Molzhon it was all about going into state with the number one seed.

"It was exciting. It was really nice to go into state first on our side," says Molzhon who had a no-hitter in the Ladyhawks' first game in the tournament against Florence.

The Ladyhawks will now face Conrad for the first game at 2 p.m. on Thursday at Stewart Park in Billings.

It will be the last chance for the senior class to grab a first place state trophy. The closest they've come in the last four years is a second place finish two years ago, and according to Molzhon it will come down to hitting and not taking anyone for granted.

"A lot of the girls have been watching softball since we were little and we always wanted to win state," says Molzhon.