The state’s best pitcher went head-to-head against the state’s best hitter and lost.

Glacier pitcher Ali Williams held a 1-0 lead with a runner on second base when she threw a riseball to Great Falls C.M. Russell junior Savanna Voyles.

Voyles, who led the state this year with a .532 batting average and 12 home runs heading into the championship game, already had two hits in the contest and was hitting Williams with power. She led off the first inning with a double and the third with a single before being stranded each time.

Voyles didn’t let her third chance get away, hitting a towering shot over the fence in right center field, giving the Rustlers a 2-1 lead. Two innings later, in the same situation, she plated another run with an RBI single, hitting CMR to a 3-1 victory and the Class AA state softball championship on Saturday at Kidsports Complex.

“My biggest regret was the one pitch I threw to Savanna.” Williams said of the home run swing. “It didn’t move like I wanted it to. They’re such a good team. It just comes down to one hit.”

Voyles finished the game 4 for 4 from the plate with three RBIs. The rest of the Rustlers (23-2) were just 4 for 23.

Even with the opportunity to put her on base without harm, as CMR did to Williams in her last at-bat, Glacier (22-7) opted to go with the option that had worked all year, letting Williams pitch.

“We talked about it,” Glacier coach Andy Fors said.

“Some of the mentality there is, ‘It’s the state championship game, let’s go after her.’ She’s a great hitter and she made us pay for that. In these situations, an out there would do as much for our momentum as a hit did for theirs. We stayed aggressive on that side and she did a good job at the plate.”

The Wolfpack took an early lead in the contest, when Christina DuFour led off the second with a single. She was hit in two batters later on a single from Sarah Frandsen and Glacier had a 1-0 lead, a tally that was almost good enough to force a second championship game. The Wolfpack couldn’t take advantage of the many opportunities it had, stranding six runners in the championship game.

“We just came up a little bit short on the offensive side,” Fors said. “We had some opportunities. I thought we put the ball in play well, we just weren’t able to get runs in.

“Credit to CMR in both games, their pitcher did a phenomenal job. They came up with hits when they needed to. They’re an excellent program. We enjoyed competing against them and they were able to come out on top.”

Glacier beat Great Falls High 4-2 in the third place game on Saturday morning, opening the game with a pair of doubles in the first inning to take a 2-0 lead.

Wolfpack senior Christine Connolly hit a sacrifice fly to right field in the third inning to score another run and Emma Shew capped the scoring with a solo home run to lead off the fourth. Anna Schrade was 2 for 4 from the plate with a pair of doubles, scoring the first run of the game.

The runs countered a fantastic day at the plate from the Bison’s Tanaya Krenik, who crushed a pair of solo home runs in the contest to cut the lead in half. The rest of the Great Falls lineup had trouble making good contact with Williams, going 2 for 21 from the plate.

Williams finished her astounding season with a Class AA-best 347 strikeouts and a 0.65 ERA. The Carroll College signee also had a team and conference-best .461 batting average and 11 home runs.

“It’s OK to be disappointed with how much they’ve put into this, but, they don’t have anything to hang their heads about,” Fors said. “Everything they challenged themselves to do — being able to come back after last year, with a target on their back, and get to Saturday — they did that. I told them how proud I was of them and how proud this town is of them. It’s tough to lose that championship game, but we’re not disappointed.”

Class AA State Softball

at Kidsports Complex, Kalispell

Saturday

Championship

C.M. Russell 3, Glacier 1

CMR 000 020 1 — 3 8 0

Glacier 010 000 0 — 1 6 0

Courtney Schroeder and Katie Huisman. Ali Williams and Christine Connolly. W—Schroeder. L—Williams.

CMR—Savanna Voyles 4-4, Brenna Bushard 0-3, Myla Robbins 0-3, Huisman 1-3, Schroeder 1-3, Kayci Edwards 0-1, Kathryn Heryla 0-1, Julianna Gonzales 0-3, Laura Poitra 0-2, Julia Shearer 0-1, Kierstin Evenson 2-3.

GLACIER—Anna Schrade 0-3, Erin McHugh 1-3, Williams 1-2, Alivia Atlee 0-3, Connolly 1-3, Christina DuFour 1-3, Emma Shew 0-3, Sarah Frandsen 1-2, Sarah Stern 0-1, Meg Hornby 1-3.

2B—Voyles. Connolly. HR—Voyles. RBIs—Voyles 3. Frandsen.

Third Place

Glacier 4, Great Falls 2

Glacier 201 100 0 — 4 5 0

Great Falls 000 101 0 — 2 4 0

Williams and Connolly. Molly Schmitz and McKenzie Staats. W—Williams. L—Schmitz.

GLACIER—Schrade 2-4, McHugh 0-3, Williams 1-2, Atlee 0-2, Connolly 0-2, DuFour 0-3, Shew 1-3, Kali Gulick 0-1, Frandsen 0-1, Hornby 1-3.

GREAT FALLS—Marihelen Held 0-3, Schmitz 1-3, Tanaya Krenik 2-3, Cayley Bushong 0-3, Staats 1-2, Madylynn Ray 0-2, Jasmine Hill 0-1, Erin Hocker 0-2, Twila Reovan 0-1, Sarah Conway 0-2, Veda Root 0-2.

2B—Shrade 2, Williams. Schmitz. HR—Shew. Krenik 2. RBIs—Connolly, Shew. Krenik 2.

Class B/C

Conrad-Choteau pitcher Tristin Achenbach was perfect in the final game of the season, striking out 16 batters and retiring all 18 as the Cowgirls beat Huntley Project 10-0 in six innings in the Class B/C state softball championship game.

Achenbach’s 16-strikeout perfect game was the third no-hitter she threw in the tournament, in which she allowed just four hits and two to 57 strikeouts. The Griz commit was also 2 for 3 with a double and two RBIs in the championship game as the Cowgirls won the title for the second straight year.

Huntley Project beat Florence-Carlton 14-6 in the third place game to open the day, led off by Kasey Jones and Keera Stookey, who each hit two-run home runs in the first inning. Tessa Hultgren was 3 for 4 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs for the Red Devils.

Class B/C State Softball

at Kidsports Complex, Kalispell

Saturday

Championship Game

Conrad 10, Huntley Project 0

Conrad 302 023 — 10 13 0

Huntley Project 000 000 — 0 0 2

Tristin Achenbach and Emily Harwood (C). Tessa Hultgren and Kasey Jones (HP). W — Achenbach. L — Hultgren.

CONRAD — Whitney Durocher 2-4, Haley Gouchenour 1-3, Achenbach 2-3, Harwood 0-4, Kinsey Harris 2-4, Nicole Erickson 2-4, Andrea Russell 2-3, Danielle Moritz 2-4, Sheridan Johnson 0-3.

HUNTLEY PROJECT — Faith Taylor 0-2, Jones 0-2, Hultgren 0-2, Keera Stookey 0-2, Natalie Finch 0-2, Kama Thom 0-2, Madison Rohrer 0-2, Mollee Krum 0-2, Emily Reimche 0-2.

2B — Achenbach (C). HR — Harris (C). RBIs — Achenbach 2, Harris 2, Johnson 2, Moritz (C).

Third place game

Huntley Project 14, Florence 6

Florence 101 201 1 — 6 8 5

Huntley 420 035 x — 14 11 4

Shay Waldbillig, Sarah Schurg and Chloe Arthur (F). Tessa Hultgren and Kasey Jones (HP). W — Hultgren. L — Waldbillig

FLORENCE — Natalie Drozdz 2-4, Brooklyn Little 1-4, Natalie Dulac 0-4, Arthur 1-4, Waldbillig 1-3, Kali Leibenguth 1-2, Schurg 2-3, Rilee Mangun 0-3, Destini Greer 0-2.

HUNTLEY PROJECT — Faith Taylor 2-4, Jones 1-3, Hultgren 3-4, Keera Stookey 2-4, Natalie Finch 1-4, Kama Thom 1-4, Madison Rohrer 0-4, Mollee Krum 0-3, Emily Reimche 1-2.

2B — Arthur (F), Hultgren 2 (HP). HR — Jones, Stookey (HP). RBIs — Arthur 2, Drozdz, Waldbillig, Schurg (F); Stookey 4, Hultgren 3, Jones 2, Thom 2, Rohrer (HP).