Blue Ponies sweep Glendive on the road

Heading into the weekend, the Havre High softball team looked to remain undefeated in the Northeast A. After their game against Sidney Friday was canceled, the Blue Ponies went over to Glendive on Saturday for a doubleheader against the Red Devils. It was not always easy, but the Ponies picked up 17-1 and 12-8 wins over Glendive.

"It's a good day for us anytime we go on the road and get two wins," HHS head coach Tony Vigliotti said. "We faced some adversity in game two being down 6-0 after three innings but I thought we stayed within ourselves, we stayed positive and we were able to come away with the victory in game two."

In their first game against Glendive, the Ponies got rolling in the top of the first inning. After a single from Avery Carlson to start the game, Lizzi Haney hit a triple to drive in the run. Haney then scored herself on a passed ball later in the inning.

After Camille Kelley got on base with a single, Jersi Morse hit a home run to left field to make it a 4-0 game. The Ponies then loaded the bases, resulting with Hannah Gingery scoring on a fielder's choice. Rachel Jette then scored on a bases-loaded walk to make it a 6-0 game. Keeley capped off the inning with a double to clear the bases and give Havre a 9-0 lead.

The Devils responded with a run in the bottom of the first. But the Ponies could not be stopped as they continued to roll in the top of the second. With the bases loaded, Carlson drove in a pair of runs with a single to push the lead to 11-1.

In the top of the third, Morse added onto the lead with an RBI double to center field. Gingery followed that up with an RBI double of her own. After getting another runner on base, Danni Wirtzberger hit a triple to right field to drive in both runs to make it a 15-1 game.

Later in the top of the fourth, Carlson drove in two more runs with a triple to center field. The Ponies then recorded three outs in the bottom of the fourth to win the game early. Carlson had a strong game at the plate going 3-4 with five RBIs. Keeley also hit well going 3-4 with three RBIs. On the mound, Elle Verploegen recorded 11 strikeouts while allowing three hits and no earned runs.

The Ponies did have some trouble against the Devils in the second game of the doubleheader. In the top of the first, the Devils got the bats going to jump out to a 4-0 lead over the Ponies. Then in the top of the third, the Devils got the bats going again to push the lead to 6-0.

However, the Ponies eventually responded. In the bottom of the third, Carlson hit a solo home run to left field to get Havre on the scoreboard. After a walk and a Glendive error, Molly Huse hit a double to center field to drive in a run to make it a 6-2 game.

Later in the bottom of the fifth, the Ponies continued to cut into their deficit. After a single from Carlson to start the inning, Haney hit a triple to left field to drive in the run. Keeley followed that up with a home run to center field to make it a 6-5 game. After a walk, Morse capped off the inning with a home run to left field to give Havre a 7-6 lead.

Glendive responded in the top of the sixth to tie the game 7-7. But the Ponies continued to roll at the plate in the bottom of the sixth. After a walk to start the inning, Haney hit a triple to left field to drive in the run for the lead. Haney then scored on a groundout to make it a 9-7 game.

Later in the inning with two runners on base, Rachel Jette hit a single to drive in a run. Gingery then scored on a Glendive error to add onto the lead. Kamree Oliver capped off the inning with a single to center field to drive in a run to push the lead to 12-7.

Glendive scored in the top of the seventh to cut the deficit to 12-8. However, the Ponies got the final three outs to win the game and stay undefeated in the Northeast A.

"They know how to compete and they never give up," Vigliotti said about the comeback. "We got some timely hits, made some good plays defensively and did a lot of good things. It was really a game that we needed. We hadn't faced much adversity so it was a good test for us and we passed the test."

Verploegen pitched all seven innings for the Ponies as she allowed eight hits, six earned runs and one walk. She also recorded eight strikeouts for the Ponies. At the plate, Haney had a strong game going 2-4 with two RBIs. She also ran the bases well as she scored three runs.

With the sweep, the Ponies improved to 7-1 on the season and 4-0 in the Northeast A. The Ponies will compete in another conference game this Tuesday when they face Lewistown on the road. The Golden Eagles will be a test, but Vigliotti believes the Ponies are on the right track with their undefeated start to conference play.

"Our first goal is to win the Northeast A conference so we put ourselves in a good position to do that," Vigliotti said. "We feel good about where we're at right now but we still gotta keep going."

The HHS softball team will next play Lewistown on the road Tuesday at 5 p.m.

Havre 17, Glendive 1

HAV 9 2 4 0 2 X X - 17 15 1

GLE 1 0 0 0 0 X X - 1 3 1

WP - Elle Verploegen

LP - H. Eaton

Havre Batting - Avery Carlson 3-4, Lizzi Haney 1-5, Camille Keeley 3-4, Molly Huse 0-3, Jersi Morse 3-4, Hannah Gingery 2-3, Kamree Oliver 0-1, Elle Verploegen 0-0, Rachel Jette 1-1, Brenna Hanson 1-2, Shelby Huston 0-1, Danni Wirtzberger 1-4.

Havre 12, Glendive 8

GLE 4 0 2 0 0 1 1 - 8 13 4

HAV 0 0 2 0 5 5 X - 12 11 2

WP - Elle Verploegen

LP - J. Jimson

Havre Batting - Avery Carlson 2-3, Lizzi Haney 2-4, Camille Keeley 1-4, Molly Huse 1-1, Jersi Morse 1-4, Hannah Gingery 1-4, Rachel Jette 1-4, Kamree Oliver 1-4, Danni Wirtzberger 1-4.