Softball: Glacier downs C-Falls

Vehement winds, blowing towards home plate, engulfed Kidsport Complex on Friday, but Ali Williams still went yard.

The junior pitcher launched her fifth home run of the year — a two-run shot in the bottom of the first inning — to pace the Glacier Wolfpack to a 5-2 nonconference victory over the Columbia Falls Wildkats.

The long ball answered the Wildkats  (11-3 overall) quick start in the top half of the opening inning.

Columbia Falls’ leadoff hitter Carlee Brown beat out an infield single to start the game and reached third base on a wild pitch and passed ball over the next two batters. Ashley Trueblood pushed Brown across the plate with a grounder to Glacier second baseman Kayleena Ikeda. Ikeda fired home, hoping to put out the charging Brown, but the Wildkat senior slid underneath catcher Christine Connolly’s tag for the first run of the contest.

Williams, calm and collected in the circle, was hardly rattled by the early run. She struck out the side to end the inning and did the same in the second. Williams finished with 11 strikeouts while walking just one batter and allowing two hits throughout seven innings of work.

Glacier (15-3) added two insurance runs in the bottom of the fifth on two hits despite sending eight batters to the plate. Connolly connected for her first single of the game to ignite the rally. The junior moved to second on Erin Shew’s sacrifice bunt before reaching third when Alivia Atlee slapped a single to left field. Katie Wiley’s ensuing at-bat scored Connolly on a throwing error, and the Wolfpack pushed one more across with a bases loaded walk to take a 4-1 lead.

Connolly and Atlee each finished 2 for 3 for Glacier.

The Wildkats responded in the top of the sixth. Columbia Falls catcher Breanna Friar reached base on an error and Sydney Hovde, a courtesy runner for Friar, advanced to second on a passed ball. Hovde scored from second on shortstop Lottie Ellis’ bloop single to right-center field.

Glacier wasted little time to answer, scoring a run in the bottom half for the final tally when shortstop Kayla Russell tagged from third base on a sacrifice fly down the right-field line off the bat of Ikeda.

“The girls battled. They stuck right in there,” Columbia Falls coach Dave Kehr said. “Glacier’s a good team. They’re tough. They bat well, they field well and obviously they have a great pitcher. She’s a great pitcher no doubt about it.

“There’s still some things for us to work on, some adjustments in the box. We’ve got to keep working at the hitting, but they’re doing well. They’re doing really well.”

Columbia Falls hosts Whitefish today at 4 p.m., and Glacier will prepare for Thursday’s crosstown rivalry game with Flathead scheduled for 5 p.m. at Conrad Complex.

Columbia Falls     100     001     0     —     2     2     3

Glacier     200     201     x     —     5     7     1

Ashley Trueblood and Breanna Friar. Ali Williams and Christine Connolly. W — Williams. L — Trueblood.

COLUMBIA FALLS — Carlee Brown 1-3, Peyton Kehr 0-2, Trueblood 0-2, Friar 0-3, Lottie Ellis 1-3, Alysha Cantu 0-3, Madi Fetters 0-3, Katie Price 0-2, Morgan Campbell-Queen 0-1, Kaitlyn Hoerner 0-2.

GLACIER — Christina DuFour 1-4, Kayla Russell 1-3, Williams 1-1, Kayleena Ikeda 0-2, Mackenzie Brester-Knight 0-3, Connolly 2-3, Erin Shew 0-2, Alivia Atlee 2-3, Katie Wiley 0-3.

HR — Williams. RBI — Trueblood, Ellis; Williams 3, Ikeda, Wiley.