Blue Ponies belt out two big wins in Lewistown

Despite having two games canceled Friday in Lewistown, the Havre High softball team got some game action in this past weekend, playing twice Saturday against a pair of Eastern A rivals in the Lewistown Invitational.

And when the day was all said and done, the Blue Ponies improved their record on the season to 2-1 with a back-to-back wins over Hardin and Laurel. Havre knocked off Hardin 10-3, before defeating Laurel 20-14.

“It was a beautiful day,” HHS head coach Tony Vigliotti said. “It was great to get outside on the field. We were able to get outside the last three days of practice and I think with every day that we get outside, our offense gets better and better.”

In the two games in Lewistown Saturday, the offense carried the day for the Ponies. Havre knocked in 10 runs off Hardin starting pitcher Demi Uffelman in the first game, racking up 14 hits and drawing four walks. Janae Boles and Sydney Wilting both led the way for the Ponies with three hits apiece. Each player scored three runs. Kinzee Peterson and Sam Oliver also added two hits, while Peyton Brown joined Boles in belting a triple. Wilting also had a double.

Hardin opened the game with two runs in the bottom of the first, but Havre tied things up with two runs in the top of the third. HHS then added a run in the fourth and fifth innings, before plating five runs in the sixth to go up 9-3. That was more than enough run support for Alex Barkus to lock down the win on the mound. The senior allowed just three runs on 11 hits. She also struck out 11 Bulldog hitters and walked just three.

Following a 14-hit outing against Hardin, the Havre offense was even better against Laurel, racking up 32 hits and scoring 20 runs in the win. All nine players originally in the batting order for Havre had at least two hits and eight players finished with three or more. Peterson led the way with four singles and a double to get five hits, while Wilting and Katelyn Maloughney each had four. Boles, Camryn Huston, Sam Oliver, Jera Verploegen and Kylie Walker all had three. Barkus added two hits in the win and Kaitlin Anderson had one hit in one plate appearance.

Oliver got the start for the Ponies and managed to get the win after Havre scored nine runs in the first inning, followed by two more in the second to build an 11-4 lead. Oliver allowed six runs in three innings on five hits. Lauren Kato helped close the game out with four innings worked. She allowed eight runs on 12 hits. Each pitcher struck out one. Riley Chapman got the loss for Laurel.

“It was good to play a couple of teams from the East,” Vigliotti said. “It was nice for the girls to see what they are capable of doing. Offensively, we played really well and I think that showed what we have the ability to do at the plate.”

Havre (2-1) will host Lewistown in the Ponies’ home opener Friday at the Sixth Avenue Memorial Field. HHS will then travel to Belgrade Saturday for a Central A conference doubleheader.

Havre 10, Hardin 3

Havre 002 115 1 - 10 14 0

Hardin 200 020 0 - 3 11 0

WP - Alex Barkus

LP - Demi Uffelman

Havre batting - Janae Boles 3-4, Peyton Brown 1-3, Kinzee Peterson 2-5, Camryn Huston 1-3, Sam Oliver 2-4, Alex Barkus 1-4, Lauren Kato 0-3, Katelyn Maloughney 0-1, Jera Verploegen 1-3, Kaitlin Anderson 0-1, Sydney Wilting 3-4.

Havre 20, Laurel 14

Havre 920 610 0 - 20 32 1

Laurel 402 231 2 - 14 17 0

WP- Sam Oliver

LP - Riley Chapman

Havre batting - Janae Boles 3-5, Sydney Wilting 4-6, Kinzee Peterson 5-6, Camryn Huston 3-6, Sam Oliver 3-3, Alex Barkus 2-4, Jera Verploegen 3-4, Katelyn Maloughney 4-5, Kylie Walker 3-5, Kaitlin Anderson 1-1.