The Plains Trotters saved their best game for last.

Putting together their best effort of the season in a do-or-die game to stay out of the Western B-C divisional tournament play-in game with Eureka, the Trotters scored a dramatic tenth-inning 4-3 come-from-behind win over visiting MAC in Plains Thursday, May 14. The well-played game marked the end of the Trotters’ home regular season schedule.

It was MAC’s first conference loss of the season and sends Plains into the Western B-C as the north’s No. 3 seed, meaning the Trotters’ likely first round opponent in Anaconda will be Three Forks, the second seed from the south at 3 p.m. Friday.

Freshman Bri Kulawinski keyed Plains’ big win over MAC with a masterful pitching performance and also scored the game-winning run after leading off the top of the tenth inning with a base hit (Plains was the visiting team in the second game of the doubleheader).

With the score tied 3-3, Taylor Saner followed Kulawinski’s base hit with a double and Karissa French brought Kulawinski home with a game-winning single. The Trotters shut down MAC in the bottom of the tenth to secure the hard-fought win.

Kulawinski pitched all ten innings, scattering seven hits and striking out eight. Ninety-two of her 137 pitches thrown were strikes.

Kulawinksi, Saner, Montana Taylor, Emery Josephson and Randi Kilgore had two base hits apiece and Franch and Cooper Spurr one each. French, Josephson and Kilgore all drove in runs.

MAC had defeated Plains 16-1 in the first game of the doubleheader that day, a game coach Jon Zigler had largely conceded to MAC after having played Eureka in Eureka the night before, a game Plains had won 15-8 with Kulawinski pitching, wishing to save his ace in the first game with MAC.

The Trotters went into the second game with MAC knowing they could lose by only nine runs or less. Instead they won, eliminating the mathematical drama.

At Eureka, Kilgore and Taylor each had three runs driven in and Saner and Taryn Meredith added two RBI apiece.

Zigler is hopeful heading into the Western B-C this week. “We're happy to be going to divisionals,” he said. “If we play the way we're capable of playing, anything can happen. On any given day anyone can beat anyone.”

    HERE’S THE PITCH – Plains Trotter Taryn Meredith in action against MAC in Plains May 14. Trotters play at 3 p.m. Friday in the first round of the Western B-C divisional tournament in Anaconda. (John Hamilton/vp-mi)
  

    TAKING OFF towards first base after making contact with the ball, Trotter Montana Taylor in action versus Mission-Arlee-Charlo in Plains May 14. (John Hamilton/vp-mi)