Blue Ponies slam Scotties

Fresh off an important win over conference rival Lewistown, the Havre High softball team traveled to Glasgow Tuesday looking to keep that positive momentum going forward and, thanks to an offensive explosion, the Blue Ponies did just that.

After plating just three runs and two hits in a shutout win over Lewistown in Havre Monday, the Ponies went off for 20 runs on 21 hits Tuesday night, defeating the Scotties 20-1 in just three innings of work. Three different Havre players notched at least four RBIs in the win, while a total of eight players drove in at least one run.

“I am proud of them,” HHS head coach Tony Vigliotti said. “It would have been easy to have a letdown after the Lewistown win, but they stayed focused and did what they needed to do.”

Sydney Wilting was the tone-setter early for the Ponies as she blasted the second pitch of the game out of the park for a two-run home run. Janae Boles got a single on the opening pitch and after Wilting’s long ball, it was 2-0. However, it wouldn’t be Wilting’s only RBI of the inning as she came back up to the plate and drove in two more runs with a single as Havre scored eight in the top of the first inning.

From that point on, Glasgow never got off the mat. The Ponies added another run in the second inning before bringing across 11 more in the top of the third to extend their advantage to 20-1. Sam Oliver, who was on the mound, got the win after allowing the Scotties to score just one run on two hits in three innings. She also finished with four strikeouts as she earned the win.

A number of Ponies had big days at the plate, but Kinzee Peterson was a driving force for the offense once again, going 4-for-4 with two runs scored and four RBIs. Wilting was right there, going 3-for-3 along with Oliver who was also 3-for-3. Wilting finished with four RBIs Oliver added two, and Jera Verploegen pitched in with three hits of her own, while also driving in a run.

In her role as the leadoff hitter, Boles also was highly productive, getting two hits, notching a pair of RBIs and scoring four times, meaning each time she went to the plate, she ended up scoring a run. Fellow senior Lauren Kato, fresh off a shutout win on the mound Monday, was stellar with the stick Tuesday, coming up with three hits as well as two runs and two RBIs. Savannah Dawson also put together a solid effort with one and four RBIs.

After back-to-back wins over Lewistown and Glasgow, the Ponies improved to 4-7 overall on the season. They are still just 1-3 in the Central A conference but they can even that record up Saturday with a sweep of conference rival Livingston. The Ponies and Rangers will go head-to-head in a doubleheader that starts at 3 p.m. in Livingston.

Havre 20, Glasgow 1

in Glasgow

Havre 8 1 11 - 20 21 0

Glasgow 010 - 1 2 2

WP - Sam Oliver

LP - Aurora Chappell

Havre - Janae Boles 2-3, Sydney Wilting 3-3, Sam Oliver 3-3, Kinzee Peterson 4-4, Lauren Kato 3-4, Sam Lovenguth 1-2, Jera Verploegen 3-4, Zephy Linton 0-0, Savannah Dawson 1-4, Melia Olson 1-3.

Glasgow - Alexys Mann 0-1, Lylie Foster 0-1, Taylor Pederson 0-1, Laura Ross 1-1 Aurora Chappell 1-1, Micah Tweten 0-1, Madison Collinsworth 0-1, Devon Johnson 0-1, Chloe Moore 0-1.