Maidens come from behind in last at-bat

It's not often you see the words "game-winning bunt" but that's what happened Tuesday afternoon after Ronan Maiden Kelsey Clairmont scored two runs on a two-out bunt up the first base line to give her team the win, after they trailed by two going into their last at-bat.

Down 7-5 in the bottom of the seventh against the AA Kalispell JV team, Carli Starkel got things going with a base hit up the middle, and then Kaylee Larson moved her over to second. Brittany Bilile then got a walk, and promptly stole second to put the tying run in scoring position as Starkel moved over to third.

The next batter, Allison Crenshaw, started off in a 0-2 hole before coming back to get a walk to load the bases, and then April Soukup did the exact same thing to walk in a run to make it 7-6.

Two batters, two 0-2 counts with two outs, and then two walks.

Clairmont came to the plate with the tying run on third and the winning run on second, and laid down a bunt up the first baseline - her third of the night. The first baseman ran down the line to field the ball, and tried to make the swipe tag on Clairmont while Starkel scored to tie it.

The home plate umpire ruled she missed the tag, and in the resulting confusion and poor throw to the plate, Crenshaw raced home for the 8-7 win.

Clairmont said afterward she was looking to bunt the entire time.

"[Coach Doug Fisher] told me to bunt after I got one strike on me. I felt pretty confident, but there was a lot of pressure," Clairmont said. "I was the last batter so I knew I'd have to do it."

"We wanted to make sure she pushed that ball up the first base line. That's what we talked about during the time-out, to make sure that first baseman had to field the ball," Fisher said.

Although the team had some miscues in the field, they got the job done in the end by playing good, effective "small ball" - sacrifice hits and bunts, stealing, and heads-up base running in the last two innings.

"They stepped up and got the job done. Allison [Crenshaw] was playing heads-up, getting that winning run. She was looking at the play while rounding third, and was able to make it home for the win," Fisher said.

He noted how well Starkel hit the ball, getting a key hit in the bottom of the fifth which represented the tying run at the time.

Larson had two of her nine strikeouts in the fourth. In the bottom of the inning Soukup got a single and then moved to second on a wild pitch, and then Clairmont laid down a perfect bunt to move her to third.

Arisha Hales made it to first on a dropped third strike, which allowed Soukup to score, tying the game 3-3. The team tried the double steal with Hales and Clairmont, but Clairmont was thrown out at home to end the inning.

Starkel and Bilile were able to get a baserunner out on a rundown in the fifth, but Kalispell moved ahead 7-3 in the sixth. Crenshaw stole second in the bottom of the sixth and then eventually she and Soukup scored on overthrows at the plate to make it 7-5.

Last week against Columbia Falls, the team had some solid hits but it wasn't enough to win, and they fell 10-8. Fisher said Larson has pitched well enough to win most games, but has been hampered by defensive problems behind her, and last week's game was no exception.

"Kaylee's kept us in every game, but we just didn't make the plays we had to against Columbia Falls," he said. "It's just part of having a young team."

But Tuesday's come-from-behind win was a big confidence boost for the team, as they travel to Polson to face the undefeated Lady Pirates Thursday. JV is at 4 p.m. and the varsity will follow at about six.