Glacier hits seven homers, nails down spot at State AA
Daily Inter Lake | Daily Inter-Lake | UPDATED 3 years, 8 months AGO
HELENA — The Glacier Wolfpack came up with a lot of crooked numbers and big flies Tuesday, advancing to the Western AA Divisional championship with two wins at the Batch Complex.
The Wolfpack began its day with a record-setting 32-0 drubbing of winless Missoula Hellgate and ended it with a 16-10 victory over Helena High — one of two teams to hand Glacier a defeat this season — to earn a spot at next week’s State AA tourney in Kalispell.
Glacier (21-2) will take on the other team that beat them in 2021, Missoula Sentinel, in the championship at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, on Batch Field 1.
Sentinel advanced by beating Missoula Big Sky 12-1 and then downing Helena Capital 3-2. The Spartans (19-3) suffered all three of their losses to Glacier.
In late Tuesday action Flathead (6-15) and Helena (12-10) battled it out in loser-out play. A win in that game means a berth in the State AA tournament next week at KidSport in Kalispell.
Glacier 16, Helena 10
The Bengals jumped out to leads of 2-0 and 6-2 before Kynzie Mohl and Co. started to really hit.
Mohl’s grand slam keyed a 7-run third inning that put the Pack up 9-6; her 2-run homer in the fifth broke a 9-9 tie and started a back-to-back-to-back barrage by Glacier.
Sammie Labrum — who like Mohl also homered against Hellgate — and Kenadie Goudette each followed with solo homers, both on two-strike counts, as the gap grew to 13-9.
After Helena scored in its half of the sixth, Labrum keyed a 4-run Glacier outburst with a 2-run single.
Kenna Vanorny had three hits, as did Labrum and Goudette. Mohl and Labrum scored three times and Vanorny scored four runs, giving her 55 on the season.
“Honestly top to bottom, kids were either getting hits or putting the ball in play and getting on base,” Glacier coach Abby Connolly said. “We had two kids reach on dropped third strikes. It was a huge team effort.”
Ella Ferrell got the win on the mound, throwing 5-plus innings of relief. She took over Mohl and scattered eight hits and a walk, striking out seven.
“I mean, they’re great hitters,” Connolly said of the Bengals, who got home runs from Amber Countryman and Brooke Richardson. “But she kept them on their toes, off balance. Really powered through.”
Helena 231 031 0 - 10 14 4
Glacier 207 043 x - 16 16 3
A Koenig, F Manibusan (3), M English (5), R Schlepp (5) and Amber Countryman. Kynzie Mohl, Ella Farrell (2) and Halle Schroeder, Mohl (2).
HELENA — Countryman 3-5, R Walsh 1-4, Brooke Ark 2-4, Manibusan 1-4, Lamping 1-2, Koenig 2-3, K Wetzel 1-3, Brooke Richardson 2-4, English 1-4, M Campbell 0-0.
GLACIER — Kenna Vanorny 3-4, Mohl 2-4, Sammie Labrum 3-5, Kenadie Goudette 3-5, Farrell 2-5, Schroeder 1-3, Emma Cooke 1-4, Teagan Powell 0-4, Alli Kernan 1-4, Zoey Allen 0-0.
2B — Manibusan, Ark, Labrum. HR — Countryman, Richardson, Mohl 2, Labrum, Goudette. RBI — Countryman 2, Richardson 2, Manibusan, Lamping, Koenig, Wetzel, Mohl 6, Labrum 4, Goudette 2, Vanorny, Farrell.
Glacier 32, Hellgate 0
The Wolfpack set a Class AA record by scoring 31 runs in the first inning, getting a grand slam from Mohl and a 2-run shot from Labrum in the frame.
The Knights issued 11 walks in the first inning.
Emma Cooke added a solo homer in the fourth.
Mohl, who also tripled, drove in eight runs; Teagan Powell had five RBI and Cooke and Labrum drove in three each. Goudette, who doubled twice and drove in three runs, threw three innings on the hill. She and Avery Anderson scattered four hits and a walk while combining for four strikeouts.
Hellgate 000 00 - 0 4 8
Glacier (31)00 1x - 32 19 0
Soden, Laird (1), Miller (1), Petrino (1), Richmond (3) and Youbles. Goudette, Avery Anderson (4) and Mohl, Brooklyn Imperato (2).
HELLGATE — James 1-2, Petrino 0-1, Richmond 0-2, Laird 1-1, Miller 0-1, Soden 1-1, Murphy 1-1, Youbles 0-1, Giround 0-1, Knapp 0-1 Babbit 0-1, Huber 0-1, Kindewater 0-0, Curley 0-2.
GLACIER — Vanorny 1-1, Bella Hodous 1-1, Mohl 2-2, Imperato 1-1, Labrum 2-2, Allen 0-0, Goudette 2-3, Farrell 1-3, Paishance Haller 0-1, Schroeder 2-2, Avalon Viau 1-1, Cooke 2-3, Powell 3-4, Anderson 0-0, Kernan 1-4.
2B — James, Goudette 2, Cooke, Labrum. 3B — Mohl, Farrell. HR — Mohl, Cooke, Labrum. RBI — Mohl 8, Powell 5, Cooke 4, Labrum 4, Goudette 3, Farrell 3, Schroeder 2, Kernan 2.