Trotters and Lady Hawks get first win
By Mike Miller
Valley Press
In a busy week of Sanders County softball, both the Trotters and Blue Hawks earned their first Western B-C wins of the year.
Last Tuesday, Plains took down Thompson Falls, 11-1, in the rivals’ first matchup this season. The Trotters advanced to 1-3 conf., 1-4 ovr.
Plains junior Aspen Rude threw a five-inning, three-hitter before the game was called due to the 10-run margin rule. Rude tossed eight strikeouts as she improved to 1-3.
The trotters had 13 hits. They were led by Rude who had a pair of doubles, going 3-for-4 at the plate. Ashley Thompson who had a double and a triple. Alex Green, 2-3, Shannel Peterson, 2-3, Hannah Powell, 2-3 Meghan Massingale, 1-3, and Felicia Earhart, 1-1, also had hits in the win.
Kayla Stark was 2 for 2 with a double to lead Thompson Falls. Kelsey Fitchett, 1-3, added a single in the loss.
The Lady Hawks offensive woes continued on Friday, as Florence up-ended Thompson Falls, coming away with a 12-2 route.
Courney Byrne and Hayley Cole combined for a win as the Falcons shutout the Lady hawks in five innings. Byrne struck out four and walked four in 4 1-3 innings. Cole began the fifth and allowed two scores before Byrne returned to close things out.
Byrne was 4-for-4 with a triple and three RBIs offensively. Paige Bodner had an RBI and three singles while Cody Miller contributed two RBIs in the win.
Brittany Bray allowed 12 hits, for the winless Lady Hawks (0-5, 0-5).
The Lady Hawks’ fortune would finally change on Saturday as they got their first win, doubling up Deer Lodge, 8-4. Thompson Falls improved to 1-5, 1-5.
“It was very important for us to get a win,” Blue Hawk head coach Randy Pirker said. “The girls have been staying really positive through all of the losses, but it made a difference getting that win. It made them feel like they could finally gain some confidence.”
“Last week was a tough week for us, we played a lot of games.” He said. “We learned a lot, and each game, we got better and better and better.”
Despite losing their previous five contests, Pirker insists that his team has been steadily improving as the season has progressed. He cited the number of errors his team allowed last week: six on Tuesday, three on Friday and only one on Saturday.
Against Deer Lodge, Bray, 1-5 on the season, threw a complete game. She allowed five hits and no walks to go with her 12 strikeouts.
Stark’s grand slam jump-started Thompson Falls, which scored five runs in second inning. She finished with six RBIs. Acacia Eaton, 1-2, Fitchett, 1-4, and Shannon Saint, 1-3, also had singles in the win.
Deer Lodge got two hits from both from Dani Walker and Shelby Applegate in the loss.
Thompson Falls will travel to Florence to face the Falcons again on Thursday.
Pirker said he’s hoping his team can play better this time around and they’ll be looking to return home with a win over the Falcons.