Pack wouldn't pack it in

Faced with do or die, the Glacier softball team decided to do it all.

After dropping game one of the AA state tournament to Billings West, the Wolfpack rattled off six-straight wins with their backs against the wall to bring home a second state championship in three seasons. 

“It was an incredible weekend overall,” Glacier coach Abby Snipes said. “Our worst performance of the year stats-wise against Billings West, then to battle into the championship. It was an incredible and gritty performance by the team.” 

After the 14-3 run-rule loss Thursday to the Golden Bears — in which Glacier committed eight errors — it might have been easy to pack it in Friday and drop a second game, but a team meeting made sure that wasn’t going to happen. 

“We weren’t going to let that end our season,” said Olivia Warriner, whose bat and arm helped guide the Wolfpack. “We had a talk that we were going to go all out, and it set us off on a good note.” 

Friday started with a 12-3 victory over Missoula Sentinel and a 9-5 win over Gallatin to move the Wolfpack into the fourth-place game against Missoula Big Sky. 

“We tried to get everyone in the dugout to cheer and leave everything out there no matter what,” catcher Cazz Rankosky said of the mentality Friday. “We are here to have fun but also win mindset.” 

Glacier dispatched the Eagles for its third win of the day, which propelled the Pack into a Saturday morning rematch with Billings West. 

The second game was much closer than the first, ending with a Warriner walk-off single in the eighth inning to send the Wolfpack to their third straight state championship game. 

“Knowing that we just beat the team that beat us already, winning that game specifically, made us know what we were there for, and we all set our minds to going all the way,” Nakiah Persinger said. 

In 2024 the Wolfpack rallied to the championship after a semifinal loss to Helena Capital, only to have the Bruins down them again and bring home the title. Persinger said that experience left a sour taste in her mouth and that the team would do anything to avoid going through that again. 

“It motivated us to push even harder this year, and we didn’t want to be in that losing situation again,” Persinger said. 

Billings Senior stood in the way of the title, with Glacier needing two victories to take the crown. It became obvious early on that the bats were going to have to be hot. 

“It was a battle of the bats,” Rankosky said. “We had seen the pitchers at that point and we all can hit them, so it was who can dig deep and hit the most.” 

The two teams combined for 57 runs over the next two games, but in the end it was Glacier coming out on top both times. Game one ended 13-12 with Warriner again providing the heroics, and game two needed an extra frame with the Wolfpack taking it 17-15. 

Warriner put on a show Saturday at the plate, hitting four home runs — including a go-ahead grand slam in game two against Senior — and driving in 14 runs. She also crossed the plate six times. 

“It’s a little nerve-racking and you are hyped up in the moment,” Warriner said about stepping to the plate in big situations. “It’s a really good feeling when you can take advantage.” 

“(Warriner) is a great player; great players step up in those moments,” Snipes said. “She maintained her even keel and her composure, and she is an elite softball player and she showed that.” 

It wasn’t just Warriner though; the hits came from everywhere Saturday. Senior Aubree Gerber hit a pair of home runs — the first two of her high school career. 

The bottom four of the Wolfpack lineup (Gerber, Karley Allen, Khirsten Terrell and Kaydee Walcheck) combined for 11 hits in the two games, along with nine runs and six RBIs. Terrell scored the winning run in the top of the eighth inning in game two on a Rankosky sacrifice fly. 

Gerber, Walcheck and Terrell also accounted for half the senior class on this Wolfpack team, another rallying cry for Glacier on Saturday. Rankosky, Persinger and Olivia Gibbons make up the other half. 

“I can’t say enough about this senior class, the most successful senior class in school history,” Snipes said. “The way we won is a testament to who they are, they just want to compete for their team.” 

“Its special to be able to play with them,” Warriner said. “They are great teammates and they all contributed to it, Aubree Gerber with her big hits, Olivia Gibbons in the circle, Nakiah with those final outs, every single one of us coming together and I am glad that the seniors could go out that way.” 

After Terrell scored the go-ahead run and Warriner drove in Persinger for a two-run lead, the Wolfpack silenced the Broncs bats to close out the game. 

“I think it almost took us by surprise, because we worked so hard for every out and those final three were maybe the easiest of the whole tournament,” Snipes said. “Just because of the way our team was able to execute.”  

“It was great, I loved catching every single inning before that,” Rankosky said. “It’s amazing to be involved with every play.” 

Rankosky caught for four different pitchers throughout the tournament, with Gibbons in the circle for the final frame. Freshman Chloe Farrell, sister of former Wolfpack ace pitcher Ella Farrell, picked up her first varsity win in game one against Billings Senior. Warriner and freshman Ava Grady also contributed for Glacier in the circle.  

For the seniors, this is state title number two after a 19-7 victory over Helena in 2023, but the feeling is just as great. 

“It’s indescribable,” Persinger said. “It’s a sense of relief, that the last eight years you’ve put in have been worth it.” 

“We had a little easier route in 2023,” Rankosky said. “It was surreal and bittersweet. There were tears of joy for the moment, that we left it all out of the field. You don’t want to end your high school season any other way.” 

For Warriner, this wasn’t her first time being with the Wolfpack as they claimed the title, but it was her first time in the dugout. She and her family were in attendance in 2023. 

“It’s two totally different feelings,” Warriner said. “Watching them two years ago was exciting even though I wasn’t even on the field. Now I get to be a part of it and it’s so cool.” 

    Glacier's Olivia Warriner (10) connects on her second home run of the day in the third inning against Flathead at Kidsports Complex on Thursday, May 1. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    Glacier's Cazz Rankosky (7) connects on an RBI double against Polson at Glacier High School on Tuesday, April 29. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider