Home Turf: Ponies reach state softball tourney with a dramatic Central A win

For the past few years, the Havre High softball team has qualified for the Class A state tournament as the third seed from the Central A. But Saturday, as the host team of the Central A Divisional tournament, the Blue Ponies were determined to change that.

And with a 3-0 victory over Lewistown in the semifinals at the Sixth Avenue Memorial Field, the Ponies did. The win got Havre into the Central A championship game against Belgrade, which knocked off the Ponies 11-1 to win yet another Central A title. But still, for HHS to reach the title game and get the No. 2 seed heading to state is a big deal.

“It’s unreal,” Alex Barkus said after the win over Lewistown. “We have always went to state as the third seed and we get to play in the championship game.”

While the Ponies didn’t win the championship game against Belgrade, the defending Class A state champions, beating Lewistown for the second time this season was no small feat. And getting it done took a spectacular effort from Barkus on the mound, as well as some great plays by the defense behind her.

In the bottom of the second inning, the with the score tied at 0-0, Lewistown loaded the bases with two outs. Yet, Barkus, who beat the Eagles in Havre in the regular season, responded with a strikeout, getting out of the jam.

Then, in the top of the third, freshman Sydney Wilting hit a game-changing home run. Early in the at bat, Wilting ripped off a ball of Lewistown pitcher Kinsey Irvin and it cleared the fence in center, giving Havre a 2-0 lead. Sam Oliver would later double and score on a pass ball, giving the Ponies a 3-0 advantage.

“I didn’t really think I could do it,” Wilting said. “Then I hit it and everyone was cheering and I just kept going (around the bases). It felt good. I was screaming.”

When it was all said and done, Havre just got four hits, but the two biggest came in the top of the third. From there, it was up to Barkus to make it stick. And she did so in the third, with another key strikeout, ending the inning as Lewistown managed to get two runners on base. Then, in the fourth and fifth innings, Barkus managed to keep the Eagles off the board thanks to a nice play in the outfield by Wilting and some ground ball outs.

“I am not one of those pitchers that can just overpower someone,” Barkus said. “I have to throw my pitches, I have to hit my spots. I have to get ground balls and get people to high fly balls and then I just have to trust my defense to help me out. We are a team. It takes all of us.”

In the bottom of the sixth, Lewistown again had a runner on base with one out. Yet, again, Barkus was able to get what she needed, forcing a grounder that Peyton Brown and Oliver turned into a double play, getting Barkus out of another jam. In the bottom of the seventh, Lewistown advanced a runner to third after a double, but Barkus retired the next three batters to finish off a complete-game shutout.

Barkus got the win after recording four strikeouts and allowing eight hits. Havre also limited its errors to only one, while Lewistown had three. The Eagles lost the game despite getting four more hits. Janae Boles, Wilting, Oliver and Brown all notched one hit in the win. Wilting also registered two RBIs after her home run.

After knocking off Lewistown in the semifinals, Havre played Belgrade in the championship. The Ponies grabbed an early lead after a home run by Camryn Huston in the top of the second inning, but Belgrade added three home runs before the game was over and scored seven runs in the fourth inning to take an 11-1 lead. Havre failed to produce any runs in the top of the fifth and the game was called due to the 10-run rule.

Barkus was on the mound and got the loss for Havre after giving up 11 runs in four innings. Belgrade’s Erin Elgas got the win. Huston was the only Havre player to get a hit, as she also had a double in addition to her home run.

Havre will head to the state tournament this week in Frenchtown. The Ponies will enter with a 12-6 overall record. HHS will play Butte Central Thursday at 1 p.m. The winner of that game will take on Miles City, the Eastern A champions, Thursday at 5 p.m.

Havre 3, Lewistown 0. SF

Havre 003 000 0 – 3 4 1

Lewistown 000 000 0 – 0 8 3

WP – A. Barkus. LP – K. Irvin.

Havre – Janae Boles 1-4; Sydney Wilting 1-4; Sam Oliver 1-3; Kinzee Peterson 0-3; Camryn Huston 0-3; Lauren Kato 0-2; Mia Olson 0-3; Alex Barkus 0-3; Peyton Brown 1-3.

Lewistown – G. Butcher 1-4; H. Hayes 1-3; M. Mangold 1-3; V. Kolstad 1-3; K. Irvin 1-3; B. Casstillo 1-3; K. Gordon 2-3; S. Long 0-3; K. Weeden 0-1; J. Morgan 0-2.

2B – Oliver 1. HR – Wilting. RBI – Wilting 2.

Belgrade 11, Havre 1, 1st

Havre 010 00 - 1 2 4

Belgrade 013 7x - 11 9 0

Alex Barkus and Kinzee Peterson. Erin Elgas and Katie Hoppe. W - Elgas (8-1). L - Barkus.

HAVRE (10-6) - Janae Boles 0-1, Sydney Wilting 0-2, Samantha Oliver 0-1, Peterson 0-2, Camryn Huston 2-2 (HR), Lauren Kato 0-1, Kaitlin Anderson 0-2, Melia Olson 0-1, Jera Verploegen 0-1, Peyton Brown 0-2.

BELGRADE (19-2) - Haylee Curry 1-3, Hoppe 1-3 (2B), Lanie Morgan 0-2, Ty Atwood 1-3 (HR), Olivia Cook 1-3, Heather Gier 2-3 (HR), Presley Jacobsen 1-3 (HR), Elgas 0-2, Khiala Rollins 2-2 (2B), Kamie Gorrell 0-0.