The Lake City Timberwolves aren't the first team out of Coeur d'Alene to head into the state 5A fastpitch tournament with an undefeated record.

But they could become the first to finish the state tourney with an unblemished record.

And Lake City (23-0) will have to remain perfect this weekend to win the school's first state softball title since 2001.

With the IHSAA's decision to change the tournament format this year from a true double-elimination format to what is essentially modified single-elimination, teams can't come back from a loss to win it, like they have been able to do in years past.

"I guess in my experiences at state we have lost the very first game and come all the way back through to the championship game, so you kinda miss that excitement about it, to fight back," Lake City coach Laura Tolzmann said. "On the other side of it, either you've got your game on or you don't. So I think it'll be a fun challenge."

The state 5A tournament unfolds Friday and Saturday at Post Falls High.

Lake City, the Region 1 champion, opens Friday at noon vs. Rocky Mountain (17-9), the fifth-place team from District 3.

Coeur d'Alene (15-7), the Region 1 runner-up, opens Friday at 10 a.m. vs. District 3 runner-up Timberline (23-2) of Boise.

Lake City has certainly had its "game on" this season. Sophomore left-hander Casey Stangel is 22-0, with a school-record 18 strikeouts in one game. She has pitched all but seven of her team's innings this year, and has 249 strikeouts in 130 innings - an average of 1.9 strikeouts per inning. She has an 0.13 ERA with 15 shutouts. Last year, she underwent an emergency appendectomy just days before state. She still pitched, and the T-Wolves went 1-2 and tied for fifth.

"Our pitcher doesn't have her appendix out, so I think we're coming in healthy this year," Tolzmann said. "They're just a young, determined, really focused group ... they're on a mission."

In the regional title game, Lake City started one senior, four juniors, two sophomores and three freshmen.

Though young, they've played the game for years.

"It's just how hard everybody works; we do everything we can to improve our game," sophomore catcher Mariah Linahan said. "This is our lives."

"It's just a real team-oriented group that just wants to get back after last year, and prove ourselves again," Tolzmann said.

Eagle (17-8) won the District 3 title, and plays Centennial (15-9) in the first round at 10 a.m. Lake City will play either Eagle or Centennial later Friday.

"I'm pretty sure we've seen most of their pitching from last year," Tolzmann said of the Boise-area teams. "I think we'll have an advantage with some stronger pitching this year. I don't think there's anybody pitching like that (Stangel) in the South."

Coeur d'Alene was undefeated heading into state in 2004, but lost twice and finished second to Eagle.

"They're going into the state tournament undefeated. I've done that before, and there's a lot of pressure that's involved with that," Coeur d'Alene coach Larry Bieber said. "I've been to quite a few state tournaments, and if you have a dominant pitcher like that, if you can produce 2-3 runs, then you can beat a lot of people. They have a very good hitting team ... they've got all the elements to win it."

Timberline is a team Coeur d'Alene sophomore pitcher Lindsie Scholwinski is familiar with.

Scholwinski (9-4), a left-hander, transferred from Timberline High in Boise to Coeur d'Alene as a freshman, but plays on a summer league softball team with the Timberline players.

"I'm not sure what to expect," said Scholwinski, a sophomore, of facing her former teammates. "If I'm pitching against them, I'm going to act like it's any other team."

Scholwinski has struck out 88 and has a 2.91 ERA in 98 innings pitched.

The Vikings' other pitcher is junior Nikki Ragsdale (6-3), who has 36 strikeouts in 47 innings.

Junior Kyeli Parker leads the team in hitting with a .423 average and Chelsey Rasmussen and Scholwinski each have 16 RBIs.

Coeur d'Alene will face either Highland (25-2) or Mountain View (21-4) in its second game at 3 p.m.

Bieber isn't a fan of the new tourney format.

"This year's tournament is way different than in previous years," Bieber said. "We've gone through the back and won a state title after losing a game and can't now."

Two years ago, when the tournament was in Kootenai County, Timberline defeated Coeur d'Alene in the title game at Ramsey Park.

The IHSAA shortened the softball (and volleyball) tournaments for at least the next two school years as a cost-cutting move. The softball tourney was trimmed from three days to two, and no team will play more than three games.

4A: Moscow is the lone team representing the north in the tournament at Ramsey Park in Coeur d'Alene. Hillcrest (13-9) is the highest returning finisher, taking third at last year's tournament.

3A: Timberlake (18-5) is rolling into the tournament as winners of its previous nine games, including a 9-0 win over St. Maries in the District 1 championship game.

Timberlake, at state for the 12th straight year, opens with Sugar-Salem (13-4) on Thursday at Ward Field in Pocatello.

Junior Ashlei Jerome leads the team in hitting with a .506 average and 25 runs scored. Jenna Hoffman leads Timberlake with six home runs and 12 walks. Nicole Cameron has pitched in all 23 Timberlake games, with an 18-5 record and 147 strikeouts in 133 innings pitched.

Timberlake went 0-2 in last year's tournament at Ramsey Park.

"We're playing with some confidence right now," said Timberlake coach Mike Menti, in his 12th season as coach. "We need that going into the state tournament."

St. Maries (10-9), at state for the fifth time in seven seasons, defeated Priest River to earn the second-seed from District 1 and will face Fruitland, who finished second last year.

"They've historically been a tough team," St. Maries coach Todd Bitterman said. "Last year, they had an ungodly amount of power."

Morgan Cummings leads St. Maries with 36 hits, 12 doubles and 28 RBIs. Tia Asbury has struck out 42.

Defending champion Kimberly (19-4) returns and will face Snake River (10-10) at 11 a.m.

"It's wide open right now," Menti said of the change in tournament format. "We've got to play three good games in a row, but if our offense comes to play and if Nicole (Cameron) pitches like she can, anything can happen."

"I kind of liked the double-elimination format," Bitterman said. "I guess they're trying to make it a standard thing in high school sports, but it ends up being tougher to get back to a state championship."