SPORTS

AA Softball: Kalispell Glacier wins championship

Mark D. Robertson

MISSOULA – The Class AA state softball tournament was the Ali Williams show.

The Kalispell Glacier junior pitched every inning of the Wolfpack’s run to the title, including a gem of a 6-3 win over Missoula Big Sky to cap things off.

In perhaps the least-dominant of Williams’ four outings, she managed to scatter six Eagle hits and strike out seven as Glacier’s offense rallied late to secure the victory.

“This weekend, I think, was a showcase for her,” Glacier head coach Andy Fors said after the first state title in Glacier softball history. “Offensively and defensively, she was dominant.”

The offense in the championship came from other likely sources, though. The game tied 3-3, Wolfpack senior Kayleena Ikeda launched the go-ahead solo home run with one out in the Glacier sixth. It was a no-doubter.

“Right when I hit it, I knew, you know, I was going over,” Ikeda said.

Aside from state title aspirations, there was some extra motivation behind the clutch hit.

“My grandpa, he couldn’t be here, so I hit it for him,” the senior said. “I knew I had to hit one for him this week.”

Christine Connolly added some insurance later in the frame with a two-run job of her own, sending Williams back to the circle with a three-run lead.

Fors had no doubt that his team would take the lead in the sixth after surrendering it due to Kendall Rauk’s RBI single the half-inning prior.

“I saw it in their eyes,” he said. “They were ready.”

But Glacier knew Big Sky, down 3-1 at one point, would mount its own rally. That came off the bat of No. 9-hitter Frankie Schwenk, who launched a fly ball to right field. But Christine DuFour, retreating to the fence, snaggled the ball and tumbled over the bright orange temporary to rob the would-be home run.

“I know it was on defense, but that was a huge piece of momentum for us,” said Fors.

It didn’t always look peachy for Glacier. Big Sky’s Macey Newbary and Kiley Snow led off the game with back-to-back singles, the latter scoring the game’s first run. Williams dug in and struck out the next three Eagles.

“I thought maybe we weren’t quite ready,” Fors recalled. “… To see Ali dig in and finish that inning, I think that kind of help. And then our offense answered back right in the bottom of the first there. I think that was huge.”

That offense was a bases-loaded single from Mackenzie Brester-Knight that plated two and gave Glacier the lead in the bottom half.

Newbary later homered and Rauk’s single tied it, but the Wolfpack never trailed again en route to their first title.

“We worked so hard for this,” Ikeda said. “We knew coming in that it would be so hard. … Just the shock of actually doing it. It’s so awesome.”

Fors, the coach at the newest Class AA school in Montana, hopes it’s a sign of things to come. He also recognizes the significance of firsts. After all, Glacier took its first state title in football earlier this school year.

“We’re a new program, a new high school,” he said. “This is only our eighth year, so to watch a group like this be able to have as much progress and as much commitment to something so new, it’s amazing.”