SOFTBALL: Glacier begins postseason title defense Thursday
<p>Glacier's Christina DuFour slides under the tag of Missoula Big Sky's Morgan Johnson to give the Wolfpack a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth at Kidsports Complex on Tuesday, April 12, 2016. (Aaric Bryan/Daily Inter Lake)</p>
Missing out on the regular season conference championship means the Glacier Wolfpack have a little longer road to a second straight Class AA state championship.
Fortunately for the Wolfpack, that road never leaves Kalispell.
Streaking Glacier brings a nine-game winning streak into today’s Western AA play-in games at the Kidsports Complex, where the Pack will play a best-of-three series beginning at noon against Missoula Hellgate. The ensuing games are scheduled for 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., if necessary.
Glacier (16-5, 10-2 Western AA) finished a game behind Missoula Big Sky in the league, giving the Eagles a bye into the state tournament, which will be played May 26-28 at Conrad Complex. The second-seeded Wolfpack are hosting the seventh-seeded Knights (3-18, 2-10). Glacier swept the season series against Hellgate with 8-0 and 10-0 wins, including Ali Williams’ perfect game on April 22.
“What we’ve focused on this week is everything changes in the postseason,” Glacier coach Andy Fors said. “We have to be ready to go tomorrow. We can’t overlook anybody.”
The defending state champs have not lost since a 1-0 setback at Big Sky on April 28. The Wolfpack has outscored its opponents 78-16 during its current nine-game roll, including a pair of double-digit routs of crosstown rival Flathead on May 12.
“I think we have quite a bit of offensive momentum coming into the postseason from our last couple of weeks,” Fors said. “For us to get the bats going late in the season like that is pretty good timing for us.”
Williams, already a three-time all-state selection, has been one of the best players in Montana this year. The senior is the state’s statistical leader in almost every pitching category, going 15-4 with a microscopic 0.44 ERA in the circle. She has thrown three no-hitters, two perfect games and struck out 248 batters in only 127 innings. Williams is also the Wolfpack’s leading hitter, batting .492 with 11 home runs and 21 RBIs.
Flathead hits the postseason diamond on Friday, hoping to extend its year into the state tournament for the first time since 2007. The Bravettes (6-14, 2-10) will travel to take on Helena Capital (11-9, 8-4) for a best-of-three series beginning tomorrow at 1 p.m. Flathead lost twice to Capital in regular season, falling 11-5 in Helena and dropping an 11-7 decision at home.
“We can compete with (Capital), we can be just as good defensively and we can be just as good with the bats,” Flathead coach Tasia Gates said. “And we proved that earlier this year with how we played them.
“I think we’ve come a long way this season,” she added. “We’ve progressively gotten better, which is all you can ask for, and I think (our team) can make it happen on Friday.”
All six of Flathead’s wins have come in their last 12 games, and the Bravettes have done it mostly with a potent and balanced offense. Flathead is averaging more than four runs per contest and boasts a team batting average of .292. Catcher Jayden Russell is the Bravettes’ leading hitter at .389, followed closely by seniors Abbie O’Brien (.375) and Kaitlin Torgerson (.358).
Flathead will host the double-elimination state tournament at Conrad Complex, which will begin on Thursday, May 26 at 2 p.m. The state championship game is tentatively set for Saturday, May 28 at noon.