Druyvestein, Pirates take home 8th title
BUTTE — Junior pitcher Katelynne Druyvestein dominated and the Polson Pirates are again State A softball champions, with a 9-3 victory over Frenchtown Saturday at Stodden Park.
The title-game win over the Broncs came after a nail-biter in the 9 a.m. unbeaten semifinal: Polson needed nine innings to beat Laurel 1-0, which was the Locomotives’ first loss.
Frenchtown then beat Laurel 10-6 — avenging a 5-2 loss on Friday — to reach the championship. The Broncs needed to beat Polson twice to win the title, and instead fell to 0-2 against the Pirates this season.
It’s Polson’s eighth state softball title and first since 2012, to go with two runner-up finishes. The Pirates lost the 2019 State A championship to Belgrade.
Polson 9, Frenchtown 3
Druyvestein held the Broncs to four hits, completing an excellent tournament in which she threw every inning for Polson, 30 in all. She allowed just 17 hits, four walks, 9 runs (three earned) and struck out 49.
She fanned six against Frenchtown, and only one of the Broncs’ runs was earned.
Offensively Josie Caye led off the game with a home run, had three hits — including an RBI single in Polson’s 4-run sixth inning — and scored three runs for the Pirates (23-1).
Turquoise Pierre drove in a run with a single and Anna Vert added a sacrifice fly in the second inning as Polson built a 3-0 lead; McKenzie Hanson singled and scored on Pierre’s sac fly in the fourth.
Up 5-2, Polson put the game away in the sixth starting with Mossey Kaulley’s one-out solo homer. Pierre and Vert followed with singles; both scored.
Caye added her RBI single and came around on a couple wild pitches and Dreyvestein’s groundout to make it 9-2.
Kendra Jacobs went most of the way in relief for Frenchtown, and gave up 11 hits.
The Broncs (22-7) had Abby Faulhaber’s RBI double in the third, and Khasidy Hodge singled in a run in the sixth. Frenchtown’s third run scored when Cassidy Bagnell’s fly to left was dropped for an error and Faulhaber, who’d also reached on an error, scored.
Frenchtown 001 001 1 - 3 4 1
Polson 120 114 x - 9 12 3
Sadie Smith, Olivia Campbell (1), Kendra Jacobs (1) and Tony Beatty. Katelynn Druyvestein and Lexie Orien.
FRENCHTOWN — Cassidy Bagnell 0-3, Smith 1-4, Maddy Reggers 0-3, Shelby Miotke 0-3, Dakota Fortney 0-0, Juna Ashby 0-3, Khasidy Hodge 1-2, Chloe Long 0-3, Beatty 1-3, Abby Faulhaber 1-3, Alexis Godin 0-0.
POLSON — Josie Caye 3-4, Druyvestein 1-4, Kobbey Smith 0-3, Orien 2-4, SaVanna Carpentier 1-3, Mckenna Hanson 1-3, Mossey Kaulley 1-3, Turquoise Pierre 2-2, Anna Vert 1-2.
2B — Faulhaber. HR — Caye, Kaulley. RBI — Bagnell, Hodge, Faulhaber, Caye 2, Pierre 2, Druyvestein, Orien, Kaulley, Vert.
Polson 1, Laurel 0
Druyvestein was again masterful, scattering six hits and no walks in nine innings, and striking out 16.
Nearly matching her was Laurel’s Ella Crookston, who allowed seven hits, walked none and fanned 13.
Kaulley’s double that drove in McKenna Henson provided the game-winner in the ninth. Laurel then lost to Frenchtown to end its season 19-2.
Polson 000 000 001 - 1 7 1
Laurel 000 000 000 - 0 6 2
Druyvestein and Orien. Ella Crookston and
POLSON — Caye 1-4, Druyvestein 2-4, Smith 0-3, Orien 2-4, Carpentier 0-4, Hanson 1-4, Kaulley 1-4, Pierre 0-4, Vert 0-3.
LAUREL — Josie Benson 0-4, Taylor Feller 1-4, Cora Styles 1-4, Lexie Stahlman 1-4, Bailey Chapman 0-4, Shelby Block 1-4, Taylor Strecker 1-4, Mikayla Moorman 1-3, Anderson 0-3.
2B — Kaulley, Moorman. RBI — Kaulley.