Wildkats storm to first State A softball crown

BOZEMAN — Columbia Falls stormed to a first-ever State A softball championship Saturday, and we’re not just talking about the weather.

Aspen Dawson, Sydney Mann and Demye Rensel all homered to back the pitching of Maddie Moultray, and the Wildkats thumped Billings Central 8-2 in a game relocated from Belgrade to Gallatin High School because of rain, hail and lightning.

The Kats liked the new digs: Haden Peters had an RBI single ahead of Mann’s 2-run homer that put Columbia Falls up 3-0 in the first inning.

That would be all Moultray needed: She allowed three hits and five walks — four walks went to GG Hastings, who scored both Central runs — and fanned 11.

But for good measure Mann, Maddy Collins and Kyrah Trenkle all hit RBI singles in the fifth inning for a 6-2 lead. In the sixth Rensel and Dawson hit solo homers.

Add in Peters’ home run in Columbia Falls’ 6-4 win over Laurel in the unbeaten semifinal earlier Saturday, and the Kats pounded out eighth homers in four tournament games: Two by Peters, Rensel and Dawson, and one each from Mann and Collins.

Columbia Falls went 4-0 at the tournament and finished 25-3. The Rams ended up 20-3.

C-Falls 300 032 0 - 8 12 2

BC Rams 101 000 0 - 2 3 2

Maddie Moultray and Demye Rensel. Gianna Haney, Brook Thompson and Ally Kowalczyk.

COLUMBIA FALLS — Tayler Lingle 1-5, Aspen Dawson 2-3, Moultray 0-3, Haden Peters 2-4, Sydney Mann 2-4, Maddy Collins 1-4, S Burke 0-0, Sophie Robbins 1-4, Kyrah Trenkle 1-2, A Reid 0-0, Rensel 2-4.

BILLINGS CENTRAL — GG Hastings 0-0, Lydia Todd 0-4, B.Thompson 2-4, Madge Prill 0-4, Courtney Hofer 0-3, Krista Gauslow 0-3, Haney 1-3, Kowalczyk 0-2, Allene Johnson 0-1, E. Hastings 0-2.

HR — Rensel, Mann, Dawson. RBIs — Mann 3, Dawson, Petersw, Collins, Trenkle, Rensel, B.Thompson.

Columbia Falls 6, Laurel 4

Trailing 3-1, the Wildkats used two singles and a Laurel error to draw even at 3-3 in the fifth inning.

Down 4-3 in the sixth, back-to-back RBI doubles from Moultray and Peters put Columbia FAlls ahead to stay, 5-4.

The Wildkats got an insurance run in the seventh when Rensel reached on an error and eventually scored on a passed ball.

Moultray again went the distance, scattering nine hits and two walks. She struck out seven

C-Falls 001 022 1 - 6 11 2

Laurel 101 110 0 - 4 9 5

Moultray and Rensel. Rachel Miller, Adrienne Roth (6) and Ava Styles.

COLUMBIA FALLS — Lingle 2-4, Dawson 0-5, Moultray 1-5, Peters 3-3, Burke 0-0, Mann 1-3, Collins 0-4, Robbins 0-4, Robbins 1-4, Trenkle 2-4, Bella Mann 0-0, Rensel 1-3.

LAUREL — Emmy Gunther 2-3, Tierra Langford 1-4, J Benson 1-3, Dalilah Hernandez 0-4, Ariette Nieto 2-3, M Anderson 2-4, Styles 1-4, Charley Mclean 0-2, Taylor Strecker 0-0, Madison Moorman 0-3.

2B — Moultray, Peters, Anderson. 3B — Gunther. HR — Peters. RBIs — peters 2,m Robbins, Moultray, Rensel.