STATE SOFTBALL TOURNAMENTS: Eyes on Eagle in 5A for Vikings, Lake City
It’s a pretty simple concept in the state 5A softball tournament this weekend.
To be the team that leaves with a state title, you’ve got to do the one thing that nobody has been able to do this season.
Beat defending champion Eagle — who enters the tournament with a 26-0 record — twice. The Mustangs are also the top-ranked softball team in the nation according to MaxPreps.com.
Coeur d’Alene, which enters the tournament with a 23-1 record, appeared to be on a collision course in a state title game rematch in a game with similar perfect records until the Vikings were upset in the Region 1 championship game by Lake City on May 11.
“They’re all good,” first-year Coeur d’Alene coach Darren Taylor said of the teams in the state field. “Eagle’s having a great season. It’s a game of softball where if we can pitch it well, hit the ball and field the ball really well, we can beat anybody.”
Lake City’s win in the regional title game snapped a 16-game losing streak to Coeur d’Alene.
“We’re young, but they’re excited right now,” second-year Lake City coach Jesse Lenz said. “They’re buying into what we’re telling them right now. This team is different than any other team I’ve coached. They’re quiet, but confident. And they kind of came out of their shell a little bit. They felt it and were running with the energy.”
Lake City (19-6) had lost the previous 12 games against Coeur d’Alene, winning the third-place game in 2013 on the way to a state 5A championship.
“It was a great energy boost for us,” Lenz said. “Coeur d’Alene hadn’t seen AK (Ashley Kaufman) much this season. They’re a great team and Darren does a great job with them. (Coeur d’Alene assistant coach Larry) Bieber is a great guy. I couldn’t be more proud of my team right now.”
Coeur d’Alene lost to Eagle 6-5 in the opening round at state in 2015 at Post Falls High, then fought back to the state title game before losing again to the Mustangs 8-6.
“Our kids know some of the pitches that they’re going to see this weekend against them,” Taylor said. “We’ve been working in practice, so there’s not going to be a lot of surprises. You’ve just got to go out and execute.”
As far as a regional title rematch?
“We’ll probably see Lake City along the way somewhere,” Taylor said. “We’re looking forward to that actually.”
Up first for Coeur d’Alene will be Highland High of Pocatello, who enters with a 24-3 record.
“We don’t know much about Highland,” Taylor said. “But we’re going to assume they’re a quality team. We do know they run well, so we’re working on our bunt defense and all that stuff so they don’t manufacture any extra runs. Our whole idea has been to keep doing things our way, and we should be fine.”
Lake City opens with Rocky Mountain High of Meridian (19-6).
“We’re excited,” Lenz said. “We’ve got some work ahead of us. Obviously Eagle is the team to beat down there from what we’re hearing. We went down earlier this year and saw them — but weren’t able to play them — and they battled. From what we’re hearing, they’re a good team. We’re excited. It’s the unknown and that’s the exciting part is that you get play someone unknown. We’ve got to get better. We’ve got to improve and get better, but we’ll see what happens.”
4A
Defending champion Bishop Kelly eliminated Lakeland in a play-in game to advance to the state tournament at Twin Falls High.
Sandpoint (13-7) advanced to state by winning the Region 1 title and will face Twin Falls in the opening round.
3A
Timberlake (12-6), which beat Bonners Ferry for the District 1 championship, opens the state 3A tournament at Ward Park in Pocatello on Friday, the team’s 17th straight state appearance.
“Six of the eight teams in the state tournament were there last year,” first-year Timberlake coach Casi Reisenauer said. “(Defending champion) Homedale is on our side of the bracket, so there’s a good chance we may see them early on. They’ve got some standout pitching, and I’m expecting them to be contenders again.”
Homedale opens at state against Bonners Ferry, the Badgers second straight appearance at state.
“You never really know what you’re going to see coming down from the northern districts,” Reisenauer said. “However, you can always count on great competition.”
Reisenauer, a 2000 graduate of Timberlake, has been an assistant for the past three years before taking over for Mike Menti this spring.
“The feeling of bringing a team to state is very different as a head coach compared to when I was an assistant,” Reisenauer said. “The stress levels are definitely much higher, but the reward of leading the team to another state tournament is even more meaningful. Timberlake now has a 17-year streak of making it to state, and I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t in the back of my mind as the season progressed. I am very passionate about the game, and it’s been a dream come true to be able to come back and coach at my old high school.”
2A
All it really took to get the season on track for the St. Maries Lumberjacks was a little good weather.
And some focus.
“The first month and a half of the season went rainout, play, rainout, play, spring break, play,” St. Maries coach Todd Bitterman said. “So what one key has been consistent playing time. Spring time is a distraction-filled time in most schools, and in our rural setting, my girls participate in and support lots of activities. Once we wrapped our heads around the necessary focus, we seemed to catch a little wave of success in our current eight-game win streak. We talked about enjoying those other ‘distractions’, but committing full attention to softball when it’s ‘our time.’”
St. Maries (12-7) — which advanced to state for the third time in four years — opens with Bear Lake (12-7) at Blackfoot High on Friday.
Defending champion New Plymouth opens with North Fremont. The teams out of District 3 (Melba, New Plymouth and Nampa Christian) appear very competitive,” Bitterman said. “Malad has been a power each year we’ve gone to state. They’re on the opposite side of the bracket, so our immediate concerns lie with Bear Lake, Melba and Declo.”