The Northwest A teams had mixed results at the Frenchtown Invitational, winning one game and losing another. Columbia Falls lost to Billings Central 12-9 after defeating Stevensville 12-2 earlier in the day.
FRENCHTOWN — On the first day of the Frenchtown Invitational, just about everybody split.
The Northwest A programs came through Friday with one win and one loss, and Columbia Falls had the nearest thing to a 2-0 start: The Wildkats led Billings Central 8-5 but fell to the Rams 12-9 in a game shortened to five innings.
Earlier in the day the Kats handled Stevensville 12-2.
Run rules and time limits kept many games from going the full seven innings. A rundown of the action follows:
C-Falls 12, Stevensville 2
Ella Branstetter allowed three hits and a walk in five innings of work in the circle and helped her cause with a double. The game ended early under the run rule. Branstetter fanned three Yellowjackets.
Katie Bulawsky hit a two-run home run to cap a five-run first inning for Columbia Falls. Ella Timlick and Onnika Lawrence tripled and Alexa Friske, Bella Mann and Chevelle Bedford all hit doubles for the Kats. Timlick, Mann and Lawrence also drove in two runs.
Billings Central 12, C-Falls 9
Kylie Gjesdal-Davis had a giant game, hitting two doubles and a home run for the Wildkats (8-5); her two-run homer to center keyed a six-run second inning that put Columbia Falls up 8-5.
Friske had three hits and scored twice; she and Bulawsky both tripled and scored in the first inning; both also had a double and an RBI. Bedford also hit a double.
Meanwhile the Rams (13-2) got two home runs from Carlee Hofer and a huge three-run shot from Jill Harris.
Hofer’s second homer, a solo shot, came in the bottom of the fifth and the game ended under the time limit before the sixth. Her first homer was a two-run job that cut the Kats’ lead to 9-7 in the fourth.
Before that inning was over the Rams got an error, a single, an RBI double and Harris’ home run to lead 11-9.
Polson 7, Havre 3
Logan McCrea broke a 1-1 tie with a two-run single in the second inning, and a four-run third sent Polson to the win.
Adrienne Crockett and Aleysia Black hit back-to-back RBI doubles to cap that third inning for the Lady Pirates, and pitcher Maddie Turner did the rest.
Turner, who also hit an RBI single in the first inning, allowed four hits, a walk and three unearned runs in five innings. She struck out four.
Lockwood 10, Polson 0
The Lions (7-5-1) scored in each of the first four innings and Reese Vonfeldt shut out Polson for six, which is when the game ended.
Ana Plutt hit a two-run single in Lockwood’s four-run first inning; Hailey Baenziger hit an RBI double to make it 6-0 in the second; and Dylan Fraker-Fox hit a two-run home run in the third that made it 9-0.
Vonfieldt allowed three hits, no walks and struck out three.
Jaliyah Pierre, Natalie Nash and Kendyl Jaeger hit singles for the Lady Pirates (7-5).
Libby 10, Dillon 6
Maddie Willis two solo home runs and Libby built a 9-2 lead after three innings and held off the Beavers.
Tessa Purdy had three hits and Weslee MacDonald had two hits, including a double, and scored twice for the Loggers.
Willis started in the circle and went 3 1-3 innings, allowing nine hits and four earned runs. She fanned two. MacDonald got the final eight outs, three via strikeout.
Ashlynn Burk and Bridget Lovaas homered for Dillon (4-8).
Hamilton 9, Libby 5
The game went the distance, but the Broncs pulled away in innings 4-5-6.
Cyleigh Parker’s RBI single and Maddison Foss’ triple let Libby close to 4-2 in the fifth inning, but the Broncs answered with two in their half.
An error and singles by Parker — she also had a double — and MacDonald led to three Logger runs in the seventh, but that wasn’t enough to make up a 9-2 deficit.
Willis (four innings) and Addyson Gassett split the pitching duties for Libby (6-4), allowing a total of 10 hits and five earned runs. Hamilton (12-1) outhit Libby 12-8, with three Broncs driving in two runs each.
Ronan 6, Butte Central 0
Esther Montoya threw six shutout innings and Marie Cheff slugged a three-run home run for the Maidens.
Nevaeh Perez broke a 0-0 tie with a fifth-inning single for the Maidens (4-6), who went up 2-0 on Christine Woodcock’s RBI single. Cheff’s blast came in the sixth, and Elizabeth Cheff walked and scored on error to make it 6-0.
When Montoya retired the Maroons (4-5) in order in their half of the sixth, ending with her ninth strikeout, the game stopped under the time limit. Montoya allowed two hits and one walk.
Laurel 11, Ronan 1
The tables were turned earlier in the day as Laurel (8-6) out-hit Ronan 10-3, with Adrienne Roth collecting two doubles and two RBIs. Roth also went the distance in the circle, striking out six and walking none in seven innings.
The Locomotives broke a 1-1 tie with five runs in the fifth inning against Keeley Jackson and Montoya. Autumn Lozeau had a double, triple and the Maidens’ lone RBI.
Elsewhere
Florence 18, Browning 0
BROWNING — Elizabeth Camp threw a three-inning no-hitter for the Falcons on Friday, striking out four with one walk.
The Northwest A teams won one game and lost one, with Columbia Falls defeating Stevensville 12-2 and losing to Billings Central 12-9.
The game was shortened to five innings due to run rules and time limits in place at the tournament.
Columbia Falls won the game against Stevensville with a score of 12-2.
Columbia Falls led early but ultimately lost to Billings Central with a score of 12-9.
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