Lady Pirates win two at State A

Polson picked up two wins at the State A Softball Tournament in Belgrade over the weekend, but Billings Central dashed their quest for another trophy on Saturday, May 27.

“I think that anytime you don't bring home the Hardware is somewhat disappointing, but in the end I couldn't be prouder of the girls and the coaching staff,” Polson Head Coach Jami Hanson said. “It was a tough state tournament with weather, but I was extremely proud of the girls' ability to overcome the elements of the weather and limited sleep.”

A late start by Polson led to a 9-5 loss to Billings Central, which jumped out to a 4-0 lead through three innings and notched five runs in the top of the fifth.

Polson scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth, but that would be it.

Carli Maley had two hits and drove in two runs, while the pitching of Samantha Rensvold, Avery Starr, and Alyssa Orien combined to allow nine hits.

Polson finished the year 22-10 with the loss.

“I felt that there were multiple girls that came to play at different times,” Hanson said. “When our bats were hot, they were all hot, and we had some good plays on the defensive side at times. I felt the pitching kept us in the game all the time.”

The Lady Pirates had battled to move through the consolation bracket, and the evening before, Avery Starr struck out nine as Polson came away with 11-2 victory against a familiar Northwestern A Conference foe, Libby. Olivia Jore smacked a three-run homer to put the Lady Pirates up 9-1 in the sixth.

“We had many girls that were in the top in the state in hitting and pitching and many ladies that really came out in the end that really played well in tough conditions and situations,” Hanson said.

After a scoreless three innings and then a 1-0 deficit established by the Lady Loggers in the bottom of the fourth, Polson rallied for three runs in the top of the fifth and six in the top of the sixth. They tacked on two more runs in the seventh, just to be sure.

McKenna Hanson, Maley, and Starr doubled in the matchup. Starr pitched seven innings, scattering six hits, allowing two earned runs, and striking out nine.

To begin Friday, the Lady Pirates piled on the runs early and late, staying alive in the state tournament with an 18-8 victory over Park. Mckenna Hanson homered twice in the matchup, finishing with three hits and two RBI.

After three innings, Polson led 7-5, then added a run in the top of the fourth, seven in the top of the fifth, and four in the sixth. Kailey Smith, Nikki Kendall, and Caitlyn Ward also had home runs.

Polson finished with 17 hits, including three from Smith and two from Kendall, Jore, Ansley Nordberg, and Ward. Smith also doubled in the matchup.

In the circle, Rensvold allowed just one earned run in four innings, striking out three. Polson committed seven errors in the game, allowing Park to score unearned runs. Starr closed the game for the Lady Pirates, striking out three and allowing just three hits and zero earned runs.

On Thursday, the Lady Pirates suffered an opening-round setback, falling to Laurel 15-6. Maley homered and finished with two hits in the matchup, but a seven-run sixth inning by Laurel proved to be too much to overcome.

Tyneesha Brown had three hits, while Kailey Smith drove in two runs in the loss.

Polson trailed 4-2 after three innings, but Laurel scored three runs in the top of the fifth and seven in the sixth. The Lady Pirates scored a run in the fifth and three in the sixth to finish with eight hits as a team.

The Lady Pirates committed seven errors in the loss.

“I want to give a special thanks to the parents that made the trip and survived the elements and for our scorekeeper that made every game regardless of the weather,” Hanson said. “Special thanks to the coaches and players for all the hard work.”

BILLINGS CENTRAL 9, POLSON 5

BillCen - 022 - 050 - 0 - 9 - 9 - 1

Polson - 000 - 005 - 0 - 5 - 6 - 5

Polson Hitting: Hits - Carli Maley 2, Olivia Jore, Nikki Kendall, Avery Starr, Tyneesha Brown; RBI - Carli Maley 2, Olivia Jore, Avery Starr, Caitlyn Ward; BB - Kailey Smith, Mckenna Hanson

Polson Pitching: Samantha Rensvold 4 innings and 2-3 pitched, 7 hits, 7 runs, 5 earned runs, 2 walks, 1 strikout; Avery Starr 2/3 innings pitched, 0 hits, 0 runs, 1 earned run, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, Alyssa Orien 2 innings pitched, 0 hits, 0 runs, 0 earned run, 2 walks, 0 strikeouts

POLSON 11, LIBBY 2

Polson - 000 - 036 - 2 - 11 - 9 - 3

Libby - 000 - 101 - 0 - 2 - 9 - 3

Polson Hitting: Hits - Avery Starr 2, Nikki Kendall, McKenna Hanson, Carli Maley, Olivia Jore, Ansley Nordberg, Caitlyn Ward, Tyneesha Brown; RBI - Jore 3, Kendall, Hanson, Maley, Starr, Foss, White., 2B — Hanson, Maley, Starr. HR — Jore, HBP--Tyneesha Brown, SACF--Carli Maley, SB--Nikki Kendall.

Polson Pitching: Avery Starr 7 innings pitched, 6 hits, 2 runs, 2 earned runs, 0 walks, 9 strikeouts

POLSON 18, PARK 8

Polson - 411 - 174 - 0 - 18 - 17 - 7

Park - 311 - 120 - x - 8 - 9 - 6

Polson Hitting: Hits - McKenna Hanson 3, Kailey Smith 3, Nikki Kendall 2, Olivia Jore 2, Ansley Nordberg 2, Caitlyn Ward 2, Carli Maley, Avery Staff, Tyneesha Brown; RBI - Kailey Smith 3, Mckenna Hanson 2, Ansley Nordberg 2, Caitlyn Ward, Nikki Kendall, Avery Starr; 2B--Kailey Smith. HR--Kailey Smith, Mckenna Hanson (2), Nikki Kendall, Caitlyn Ward. HBP--Carli Maley, Avery Starr. SACB--Tyneesha Brown, Caitlyn Ward

Polson Pitching: Samantha Rensvold 4 innings pitched, 6 hits, 6 runs, 1 earned run, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts; Avery Starr 2 innings pitched, 3 hits, 2 runs, 0 earned runs, 0 walks, 3 strikeouts

LAUREL 15, POLSON 6

Laurel - 301 - 037 - 1 - 15 - 10 - 0

Polson - 200 - 013 - 0 - 6 - 8 - 7

Polson Hitting: Hits - Tyneesha Brown 3, Carli Maley 2, Mckenna Hanson, Avery Starr, Kailey Smith, RBI - Kailey Smith 2, Mckenna Hanson, Carli Maley, Samantha Rensvold, Avery Starr; HR - Carli Maley 1

Polson Pitching: Samantha Renvold 6 ⅔ innings pitched, 10 hits, 12 runs, 9 earned runs, 4 stikreouts, 4 walks, Avery Starr ⅓ innings pitched, 0 hits, 3 runs, 3 earned runs, 3 walks, 0 strikeouts