COLUMBIA FALLS — It took nine innings to finish the nonconference softball game between Glacier and Columbia Falls on Friday night, and neither team walked away a winner as the contest ended in a 7-7 tie  when the game was called for darkness.

Glacier put the pressure on early in the second inning after their first two hitters reached on errors. Katie McHugh’s single to right field drove in Hannah Atlee and the Wolfpack had runners on second and third with no outs.

Columbia Falls pitcher Ashley Trueblood kept her composure and struck out the next two hitters she faced before a ground out ended the rally.

In the bottom half of the second, Wildkat shortstop Winter Kemppainen drew a walk to start the inning. She advanced to third on a Madi Fetters base hit.

Fetters stole second before Amanda Morrison’s seeing-eye-single drove in two runs to give Columbia Falls a 2-1 lead.

Glacier pitcher Ali Williams walked two more Wildkats in the inning and loaded the bases with one out, but she went on to strike out Carlee Brown and got Trueblood to ground out to Glacier shortstop Kayla Russell to stop the damage.

Williams wouldn’t allow another run until the seventh inning.

“I think I really got my change up working,” Williams said. “Before that we weren’t really throwing my change up. That definitely helped and I just started focusing more on hitting my spots.”

It was a relatively quiet game until the top half of the sixth.

Glacier’s first two batters, Williams and Kayleena Ikeda, reached on consecutive infield errors.

Atlee advanced them both with a sacrifice fly to center field.

With runners in scoring position, Katie McHugh’s line drive to center field drove in Williams.

Columbia Falls catcher Courtney Murray tried to pick Ikeda off of third, but her throw got past third baseman Tiffany Hummer and Ikeda trotted home.

Later in the inning, Russell and Tracey Howe drove in two more runs, both with base hits up the middle, before Trueblood finally retired the side.

Trailing 5-2 in the bottom of the seventh, Columbia Falls finally sparked a rally.

Hummer led off and reached on an error. Brown walked, and Trueblood singled to load the bases.

Breanna Friar’s base hit drove in Hummer before Glacier recorded their first out, forcing Brown out at home on Kemppainen’s ground ball.

Fetters drove in her first and second RBI with a double down the right field line that sent the Columbia Falls faithful into a frenzy as the Wildkats tied the game.

Luckily for the Wolfpack, Williams got the next two hitters to fly out and the game was sent to extra innings.

Both teams went down in order in the eighth and the umpires threatened to call the game as dark clouds covered up the field that was once glowing in the sun, but they allowed one final inning to be played.

In the top half of the ninth, Ikeda hit a double that drove in Williams who was walked. Anna Jenks hit a single to score Ikeda before the third out was made.

Columbia Falls, trailling 7-5, would then come from behind again.

Trueblood and Kemppainen walked and advanced on a sacrifice from Friar.

Madi Fetters came up big again for the Wildkats.

Her second multi-RBI hit was a hard single to right field that scored both of her teammates and gave the Wildkats some hope of stealing a win from the Wolfpack.

As the relay throw came in from the outfield, Williams cut it off and threw out Fetters who was trying to sneak to second.

Williams struck out the next Wildkat and the game was ruled a tie.

“We worked extremely hard. I thought we did really well. It was a good battle,” Williams said.

“If we could play games like that every week, we would take them,” Glacier coach Andy Fors said.

“Down the stretch there, that’s where the girls learn to play together and learn what they’re made of. High pressure situations really help us at being able to make a play when it counts.”

Like his counterpart, Columbia Falls head coach Dave Kehr was pleased with the dramatic tie.

“It was great game. We really hung in there and I was proud of the girls,” Kehr said.

“We used a lot of different girls. Madi came through with the big hits there for us. I think we hit the ball, overall, pretty well. The errors kind of deflated us, but the girls stayed up and it was just a fun game.”

Glacier    010    004     002     —     7 10 1

Columbia Falls     020    000    302    —    7 9 5

Ali Williams and Christine Connolly. Ashley Trueblood and Courtney Murray.

GLACIER — Kayla Russell 4-5, Taylor Riggles 1-4, Ali Williams 0-4, Kayleena Ikeda 1-5, Hannah Atlee 0-4, Anna Jenks 1-4, Katie McHugh 2-4, Tacey Howe 1-3, Josie Brosseau 0-1, Christine Connolly 0-3,

COLUMBIA FALLS — Tiffany Hummer 1-4, Carlee Brown 0-4, Ashley Trueblood 1-4, Breanna Friar 2-4, Winter Kemppainen 0-3, Madi Fetters 3-5, Amanda Morrison 2-2, Alysha Cantu 0-2, Courtney Murray 0-4, Samantha Collins 0-0, Kaitlyn Hoerner 0-3.

2B — Ikeda. Fetters. 3B — Russell. RBI — McHugh 2, Ikeda 1, Jenks 1, Howe 1,  Russell 1. Morrison 2, Friar 1, Fetters 4.