Lady Pirates stay perfect; Maidens grab first win
It was a full week of high school softball action for Lake County Class A teams as the Polson Lady Pirates remained undefeated, while the Ronan Maidens picked up their first win of the 2025 season in a dominating home showing against Browning.
Polson continues hot start with Ronan win
Perhaps the Lady Pirates are using the New York Yankees’ new torpedo bats as they are off to a hot 2-0-1 start, combining timely hitting with shutdown pitching.
On Thursday, March 27, Polson hosted rival Ronan and came away with a 3-0 victory thanks to a near-flawless outing from senior pitcher Sam Rensvold.
It was needed as it was a tight battle from Ronan. Kaydnce Santos kept the game close with four and one-third innings pitched, walking just two and striking out four while not allowing a ton of damage from eight Polson hits.
Rensvold tossed a complete-game one-hitter for Polson over five innings, striking out several Maidens and allowing no walks or earned runs. Backing her up was an offense that scored one run apiece in the second, fourth and fifth innings.
Emma Smith led the way at the plate with a 2-for-2 performance, including a double. Liz Cunningham also doubled twice in the win, while Rensvold helped her own cause with another two-bagger.
Polson has now outscored opponents 13-4 through its first three games and looks to be a major contender in the Northwest A again this spring. Ronan appears to be right there, able to compete with elite softball competition.
Ronan bounces back
For the Ronan Maidens, the week began with frustration but ended with promise. Now sitting at 1-3 overall, Ronan has shown flashes of its potential while continuing to grow under the leadership of head coach Andy Ludtke.
On Tuesday, March 25, the Maidens traveled to Stevensville for a non-conference matchup and built a 6-0 lead before a fifth inning that saw the Lady Yellowjackets erupt for 12 runs. Despite the 13-9 loss, Ronan produced eight hits, including two apiece from Ally Luedtke and Nevaeh Perez. Freshman KaNana Couture also chipped in with a pair of RBIs.
Ronan starting pitcher Kailyn Marengo went 4-1/3 innings with six strikeouts and just two walks before handing the ball over to Alexa Youngren.
Two days later, Ronan couldn’t solve pitcher Sam Rensvold and the Polson defense, managing just one hit — a single by Kylee Kelch — in the 3-0 loss.
Ronan’s progress was on full display Saturday, March 29, when the Maidens hosted Browning and delivered a commanding 18-0 victory in just three innings.
The offense exploded for 11 hits and nine runs in each of the first two innings. Santos was unstoppable both in the circle and at the plate, throwing two no-hit innings with four strikeouts while going 2-for-2 with a home run, double, and five RBIs.
Autumn Lozeau and KaNana Couture also went 2-for-2 and 2-for-3, respectively, with Couture adding a double and an RBI. Raelynn Orr, Malory Marquez and Kai-Cee Sorrell also knocked in runs as Ronan batted around in both frames.
Youngren came in to close out the third inning with three straight strikeouts, sealing Ronan’s first win of the year.
At Stevensville
STEVENSVILLE 13, RONAN 9
NWA Maidens (0-2), SWA Lady Yellowjackets (1-0)
Ronan - 300 - 300 - 3 - 9 - 8 - 5
S-ville - 000 - 0(12)1 - x - 13 - 9 - 4
RONAN HITTING: Ally Luedtke 2-4, Kailyn Marengo 0-2, Alexa Youngren 0-1, Nevaeh Perez 2-4, Kylee Kelch 1-4, Autumn Lozeau 0-4, Kai-Cee Sorrell 1-4, Raela Bartel 0-2, KaNana Couture 1-1, Shelby Taylor 1-3, Malorey Marquez 0-1, Adrienne Crockett 0-2; RBI - Couture; RBI: Luedtke, Perez, Lozeau, Couture 2
RONAN PITCHING: Kailyn Marengo (4 and 1/3IP, 6K,5H,2W), Alexa Youngren (1 and 2/3IP, 1K,4H,3W)
At Polson
POLSON 3, RONAN 0
Ronan - 000 - 00 - 0 - 1 - 3
Polson - 010 - 11 - 3 - 8 - 1
POLSON HITTING: Sam Rensvold 1-3, Olivia Jore 1-2, Liz Cunningham 1-3, Opal Nash 0-3, Sierra Perez 1-3, Emma Smith 2-2, Madison Turner 1-3, Aaliyah Adams 0-2, Jaja Nichols 1-2; 2B: Smith, Cunningham 2, Rensvold
POLSON PITCHING: Sam Rensvold (5IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER)
RONAN HITTING: Ally Luedtke 0-2, Autumn Loreau 0-2, Kaydnce Santos 0-2, KaNana Corture 0-2, Kylee Kelch 1-2, Kai-Cee Sorrell 0-1, Raela Bartel 0-2, Shelby Taylor 0-2, Hadassah Read 0-1
RONAN PITCHING: Kaydnce Santos (4 1/3IP, 8H, 3R, 1ER, 2BB, 4SO)
At Ronan
RONAN 18, BROWNING 0
Browning - 000 - 0 - 0 - 4
Ronan - 99x - 18 - 11 - 0
RONAN PITCHING: Kaydance Santos (2IP:4K,0H,0W), Alexa Youngren (1IP:3K) and Shelby Taylor, (3) Adrienne Crockett. Camee RidesAtTheDoor (1⅔IP:3K,10H,5W), Bella L (⅓IP:1K,1H) and Paulina Fitzgerald
RONAN – Ally Luedtke 1-2, Raelynn Orr 1-1, Autumn Lozeau 2-2, Kaydance Santos 2-2, KaNana Couture 2-3, Kylee Kelch 1-1, Kai-Cee Sorrell 1-1, Malory Marquez 1-3, Shelby Taylor 0-2, Adrienne Crockett 0-0, Hadassah Read 0-2; HR: Santos. 2B: Santos, Kelch, Couture. RBI: Luedtke, Orr, Lozeau 3, Santos 5, Couture, Kelch, Sorrell, Marquez, Crockett.
Ronan's Kaydnce Santos delivers from the circle during last week's abbreviated game against Polson. (Bob Gunderson photo)