Blue Ponies finish conference season undefeated

In only its second appearance at home this season, the Havre High softball team wrapped up its conference slate in the regular season with a doubleheader at Sixth Avenue Memorial Field Saturday. Despite adverse weather conditions, the Blue Ponies defeated Glendive, 10-0, and then defeated Sidney, 15-0, to finish undefeated in the Northeast A.

"That was one of the goals that these kids set at the beginning of the year. They wanted to see if they could go undefeated in the Northeast A and they did that," HHS head coach Tony Vigliotti said.

The weekend doubleheader also served as the senior day for the Ponies where they honored Keylee Kline and Alyssa Oliver. While the Ponies had a great performance over the weekend, playing at home for the last time brought about mixed emotions for the seniors.

"It's a mix of emotions," Kline said. "It's really exciting and really sad at the same time because it's our last time playing on the field together."

While it is bittersweet for their careers to soon be coming to an end, the seniors should be proud of the careers they had.

"They've both been great players for our program," Vigliotti said. "They both bring good energy to our program, we're so proud of them and they had a great day to finish things off."

The Ponies started the senior day with their 10-0 win over Glendive. After a scoreless first inning, the Ponies got things going in the bottom of the second. With two runners on, Kline made sure to make her senior day a memorable one with a three-run home run to left field to give Havre the lead.

In the bottom of the third, Oliver made sure to keep pace with her fellow senior as she knocked a two-run home run to center field to push the lead to 5-0. Later in the inning, a Glendive error allowed Molly Huse to score another run. After the Ponies then loaded the bases, Avery Carlson was hit by a pitch to bring in another runner for a 7-0 lead.

The Ponies held onto momentum in the bottom of the fourth. At one point in the inning, the Ponies recorded four straight singles to drive in another pair of runs. Another Glendive error allowed Taylor Ball to score and give Havre a 10-0 lead to cap off a strong game at the plate for the Ponies. Kline finished the contest with three RBIs while three different Ponies recorded two hits.

In the top of the fifth, the Ponies got three outs to end the game early by run rule. Elle Verploegen pitched the entire game for the Ponies and did not allow any runs while recording 10 strikeouts. Along with Carlson, Verploegen has been a reliable pitcher for Havre this season and should be going forward.

"I think our pitching has gotten a little bit better each time out," Vigliotti said. "It's nice to have two (pitchers) that you can depend on going down the stretch and getting into tournament time."

The Ponies capped off the weekend with their 15-0 win over Sidney. The Ponies got it started early in the bottom of the first to take control. After the first two batters reached base, a Sidney error allowed both runners to score. An RBI single from Huse then brought in another run to further extend the lead.

Later in the inning, Jersi Morse knocked in another run with a single. Kline then came up to the plate and knocked a two-run home run out of left field.

"It was really exciting because it was senior day and I've just been working hard for that," Kline said about her second home run of the day.

In the bottom of the second, the Ponies continued to add to their lead. Carlson scored from third on a wild pitch. A sacrifice fly from Huse then allowed Lizzi Haney to get home to push the lead to 8-0.

Havre just kept it rolling in the bottom of the third. Kline continued her strong day at the plate with an RBI single to bring in another run. Morse then stole home to push the lead to 10-0. Carlson brought in another pair of runs with a double. Looking to keep pace with Kline, Oliver hit another home run to left field to cap off her senior day.

"It was awesome. I was very proud of myself and Keylee for doing too," Oliver said about the home runs.

Ball ended the game by run rule with an RBI double to push the lead to 15-0 in the bottom of the third. The seniors Oliver and Kline finished the game with three RBIs and Carlson led the team with three hits. Carlson also excelled at the mound as she pitched the entire game where she did not allow any runs or hits while striking out five batters.

Before their senior night, the Ponies started the weekend Friday night on the road at Lewistown where they pulled out a 14-13 victory. In the top of the first inning, After a double and an error to start the game, Huse hit a hard ground ball to right field to drive in both runners for the 2-0 lead.

But the Eagles responded in the bottom of the first to take a 4-2 lead. So in the top of the third, the Ponies looked to get back in the game. They started the inning with back-to-back singles from Oliver and Huse. Oliver was then able to steal home to cut into the deficit. Camille Keeley then tied the game with an RBI single.

The Eagles responded with a home run in the bottom of the third to take a 5-4 lead. But again, the Ponies came right back. After getting a pair of runners on base to start the top of the fourth, a Lewistown error allowed Danni Wirtzberger to score from third base and tie the game.

But the Eagles just kept their bats rolling in the bottom of the fourth. Back-to-back singles gave Lewistown a 6-5 lead early in the inning. A solo home run then stretched the lead to 7-5. The Eagles continued to get runners on base and continued to bring them home to push the lead to 9-5.

The Ponies again responded to get back in the game. Kline got the scoring started with a sacrifice fly to get a runner home. Back-to-back RBI singles from Wirtzberger and Carlson then cut the deficit to one run. Haney then hit a double to drive in another runner to tie the game once again.

The Ponies kept it rolling in the top of the sixth. After a single and a hit batter to start the inning, Keeley hit a single to left field to give Havre a 10-9 lead. A groundout from Elle Verploegen then got another runner home to push the lead to 11-9. A sacrifice fly from Kline got another runner home. A pair of errors and passed balls allowed the Ponies to push the lead to 14-9.

But the Eagles did not go away in the bottom of the seventh. A pair of Havre errors allowed a pair of runners to score and cut the deficit to 14-11. The Eagles continued to make plays and were able to cut the deficit to 14-13. But Verploegen was able to record a strikeout to end the game.

"I think we showed some character," Vigliotti said about the tight win. "Lewistown is a tough place to get a win, and for them to show some character and come back when they were behind, I think it was huge."

Verploegen pitched the last 3.2 innings for the Ponies and earned the win. She allowed two earned runs and four walks while recording five strikeouts. Huse and Carlson each recorded three hits while Huse, Gingery and Kline each recorded two RBIs in the contest.

With the weekend now over, the Ponies move to 10-6 on the season and 8-0 in the Northeast A. With the success that the Ponies have had this season, Vigliotti just wants to see his players to continue hitting well and playing good defense with the postseason on the horizon.

"I think we just keep doing what we're doing," Vigliotti said. "I think we're confident and I think the kids are confident."

The HHS softball will next play in the Butte Invite this weekend.

Havre 14, Lewistown 13

HAV 2 0 2 1 4 5 0 - 14 12 4

LEW 3 1 1 4 0 0 4 - 13 12 7

WP - Elle Verploegen

LP - K. Southworth

Havre Batting - Avery Carlson 3-4, Lizzi Haney 1-5, Alyssa Oliver 1-5, Molly Huse 3-4, Hannah Gingery 0-3, Camille Keeley 2-3, Jersi Morse 0-2, Elle Verploegen 0-3, Keylee Kline 0-2, Danni Wirtzberger 2-4.

Havre 10, Glendive 0

GLE 0 0 0 0 0 X X - 0 4 3

HAV 0 3 4 3 X X X - 10 10 1

WP - Elle Verploegen

LP - M. Eaton

Havre Batting - Avery Carlson 0-2, Lizzi Haney 1-3, Alyssa Oliver 1-3, Molly Huse 1-2, Hannah Gingery 2-2, Camille Keeley 1-3, Jersi Morse 2-3, Keylee Kline 2-3, Danni Wirtzberger 0-3.

Havre 15, Sidney 0

SID 0 0 0 X X X X - 0 0 3

HAV 6 2 7 X X X X - 15 11 0

WP - Avery Carlson

LP - T. Hansen

Havre Batting - Avery Carlson 3-3, Lizzi Haney 1-2, Alyssa Oliver 1-3, Molly Huse 2-2, Hannah Gingery 0-2, Taylor Ball 1-1, Camille Keeley 0-1, Jersi Morse 1-2, Keylee Kline 2-2, Danni Wirtzberger 0-2.