SPORTS

Club softball team extends its success to national stage

Grady Higgins
ghiggins@greatfallstribune.com

The Great Falls Selects girls’ club softball team has won its fair share of hardware.

The Selects of coaches Justin Robbins and Brian Rodgers boast three-consecutive U16 (18 and under) state titles, the latest coming in July, and an undefeated run through regionals in Tri-Cities, Wash., in September, earning a spot at the national tournament in early November in Lancaster and Palmdale, Calif.

Great Falls put Montana softball on the map with its performance at nationals, outscoring its opponents 41-16 en route to a runner-up finish, playing sponsored teams with almost twice the amount of players and resources in many cases.

Robbins, who along with Rodgers has coached most of the group of 10 girls since they were 9 years old, said the most coveted award his team received was something that can’t be displayed in any case.

“The most amazing moment of the tourney,” Robbins said, “came when two (college) coaches from Ohio and New York approached me and said they would take any one of our girls after seeing the way they supported each other and their heart.

“That was the trophy of the weekend, for these guys to go out of their way and recognize that.”

Rodgers said Great Falls’ success has become even more special for him because of how long they’ve stuck together.

“I think it means a lot more,” Rodgers said, “because we’ve watched them grow up. You look at girls that who couldn’t throw or pick up a bat or steal a base when they first started and to have other coaches come up to (at nationals) and say ‘How are your one to nine batters able to hit like that?’ is incredible.

“Coaching them that long, you have a soft spot in your heart for them, always.”

The Selects certainly shocked many at the tourney, losing only two games, both to the eventual champion NorCal Bandits of Sacramento, Calif.

GF took the No. 9 seed coming out of pool play on day one, losing only to the Bandits in a tight 2-1 contest on the final batter of the game.

The Selects cruised to an 8-2 victory in the first-round of day two, downing Flash Fastpitch before topping USA Preps Select 4-3 in game two.

Robbins said he was especially impressed by the win over the Preps Select.

“We were playing a team that was comprised of handpicked players from across the country,” Robbins said. “Brenna Bushard gave us the edge with a homer that gave us the lead at 4-2. Those little girls battled their hearts out, as they always do.”

Great Falls took its next two games by a combined score of 11-1, facing off with NorCal again in the title game.

The result turned out to be the same as before, a dramatic finish that saw the Bandits squeak by the Selects on the final batter of the game, this time winning 3-2.

Rodgers said the tournament was nothing but a victory for the team, despite the loss in the title game.

“I didn’t expect them to go as far as they did,” Rodgers said. “We’d had success on that state level and so we wanted to see how we did beyond that. After the national championship game, you would’ve thought their dog had died. But here they were, this tiny team from Montana, and now everyone wanted to know who they were.”

Robbins said the consistent contributions throughout the lineup helped spark his team’s run through the tourney.

“They all hit amazing,” Robbins said. “Every kid had their moment when they were the hero. It was a really exceptional experience.”

The team consists of players from Great Falls and the surrounding area, including pitcher Tristin Achenbach from Choteau, Myla Robbins and Kierstin Evenson, members of the C.M. Russell High volleyball squad, and Savanna Voyles, a golfer for the Rustlers.

Rounding out the squad is Laura Poitra, Katie Husiman, Julianna Gonzales, Brenna Bushard, Rebecca Knutson, and Akasia Denton.

Myla, Robbins’ daughter, said the Selects went into the tournament not really knowing what to expect.

“It was super exciting for our team,” she said. “We went down to California and we didn’t know how it would play out with the other teams. But the atmosphere was amazing, being able to meet coaches and other players, it was just a great experience.”

Achenbach delivered a gritty performance for the Selects at nationals, pitching all but three innings over a grueling eight-game stretch in just two days.

“To be able to ask what we did of her and have her perform the way she did is amazing,” Rodgers said. “I’d see her blisters on her hands after the games and ask her if she was OK and she’d say ‘I’m good. I’ll hurt tomorrow.’”

Achenbach said her trust in the players behind her helped her maintain her confidence throughout the tournament.

“I typically pitch a lot but not that much in that little amount of time,” Achenbach said. “It was good to know I had great teammates behind me. It’s great playing with the people that you have for so long, who’ve become your best friends and to get to travel and do amazing things it was such a great opportunity.”

Rodgers, Voyles’ father, said the team owes much of its success to the effort and dedication of the parents.

“Our parents are a godsend,” Rodgers said. “We couldn’t do it without them. Everybody is on board all the time for these girls. I’ve been around organized baseball and softball for many years, and I haven’t seen anything like it.”

Robbins echoed Rodgers’ sentiments.

“They pay for everything themselves,” Robbins said. “We don’t get any extra help from the Selects other than uniforms and equipment. For 10 families to give up that kind of time and money is incredible. We’re so lucky to have such support.”

Myla said the team is an extended family.

“These girls are like my sisters,” she said. “And we have two great coaches. I’m super close with both of them. They’re great role models and have taught us everything that we know.”

Such success from a softball team from Montana is extra impressive when coupled with the fact that the state’s climate is not conducive to year-round play.

The Selects make due with a warehouse on the west side in the winter.

“They’re not lucky enough to be in California where you can go from tournament to tournament and practice outside,” Rodgers said. “In Montana, you don’t get much outside time. We’re in a beer warehouse where we’ve got a batting cage set up and you can hit some pop flies but not much else. So, we’ve got kegs on one side and a practice area on the other side. The girls could be doing any number of things in the winter but they’re so devoted.”

Three of the Selects will be graduating from high school this spring, but the group will still be together next summer, as they will still be eligible to compete in the 18 and under league.

“It’s a tight-knit group,” Rodgers said. “As long as they can stay together, they’ll play no matter what.”

Robbins said it has been a privilege to coach this group.

“It’s kind of hard to talk about without getting emotional,” he said. “I’ve been around the game for a lot of years and it’s rare to have these neighborhood kids playing against these teams with all these resources and to go down to nationals and win every out but two was special.

“This is the stuff movies are made of.”