PREP SOFTBALL: Vikings reign again in the rain, repeat as 5A regional champs

5A REGION 1

By MARK NELKE

Sports editor

Kristine Schmidt did what Kristine Schmidt has done all year, Catherine Bakken came up with big hits in both games, and the Coeur d’Alene Vikings repeated as 5A Region 1 softball champions on Tuesday.

Schmidt pitched a pair of three-hitters and struck out 19 in two games, including 11 in a 10-0 victory over Lake City in the championship game at Coeur d’Alene High’s Larry Schwenke Field.

Bakken went 5 for 9 on the day with a game-winning homer in the first game, a 3-1 win over Post Falls.

Coeur d’Alene (20-4), winners of 12 straight games, captured the regional title for the second straight year, and advances to state May 19-20 at Thunder Ridge and Bonneville high schools in Idaho Falls.

“It was a lot different feeling,” said Schmidt, who along with catcher Delaney Gosch has signed to play at North Idaho College next year. “Last year, we weren’t expecting it. This year, we didn’t take anybody for granted; it feels really good … it’s good to repeat.”

“This last game, run-ruling them was lovely,” said Bakken, who has signed with Community Colleges of Spokane.

Earlier Tuesday, Lake City beat Lewiston 6-4 at Finucane Park in Hayden. Lewiston then beat Post Falls 11-8 at Finucane in a loser-out game. Post Falls finished 8-16.

Lake City (18-6) will play host to Lewiston (12-14) on Thursday at 4 in a loser-out game. The winner advances to a state play-in game Saturday in Prairie.

In Coeur d’Alene’s first game, Bakken provided the dramatics — after Peyton Lozier of Post Falls provided some drama of her own, smashing a home run to center field with two out in the top of the seventh to tie the game at 1-1.

In the bottom half, Gosch led off with a single, and Bakken homered to left field to win the game.

“I was just thinking contact,” Bakken said. “We had a runner on, and I thought if I made contact, she could score, so I just wanted to make contact.”

Bakken also doubled home Coeur d’Alene’s first run against Post Falls in the first inning.

Against Lake City, she went 2 for 3 with an RBI.

“She rocked it this year,” Coeur d’Alene coach Bobbi Darretta said of Bakken, her niece. “She rocked it today, under pressure. To be able to see my niece finish that game for us was so incredible.”

Against Lake City, leadoff hitter Chloe Burke doubled and tripled and drove in a run and scored three for Coeur d’Alene, which scored five runs in the first two innings. Gosch was 2 for 4 with three runs scored.

Gosch said this year’s regional title was rewarding in that “We had to work as one, with new (assistant) coaches, and an almost entirely new infield and outfield.”

And on Tuesday, Schmidt walked just one in two games. She walked none in the title game, played through intermittent drizzle, with a lightning delay in the bottom of the first.

“They all were helpful at the plate,” Darretta said. “They all made hits. They made adjustments. Kristine kept throwing heat the whole time. They had so much energy … we just had all the elements put together today.”

Schmidt retired the first eight batters in the title game, before Sami Chavez singled sharply to center field in the third. Chavez had two of Lake City’s three hits in the championship game. The T-Wolves committed six errors in the title game, and the Vikings continually took the extra base.

“Game 2 (the title game), we didn’t play well overall,” first-year Lake City coach Jordyn Hensley said. “A disappointing loss, but we still have the same goal; we just have a longer road to get there. I am confident that our team has what it takes to work their way to state.”

Earlier, KaeLee Kolden had two doubles, drove in three runs and scored once in Lake City’s win over Lewiston. Taylor Hill hit a two-run double in the first for the Timberwolves.

Jenna Barney hit a pair of solo homers for Lewiston.

In the loser-out game, Eden Nye hit a two-run single in the second inning and a two-run homer in the sixth for Post Falls. Lewiston scored six in the fourth to go up 11-5, then held on.

COEUR d’ALENE 10, LAKE CITY 0

Lake City 000 000 — 0 3 6

Coeur d’Alene 320 032 — 10 11 2

Game called in 6th inning due to 10-run rule.

Layla Gugino, Kylee Palmer (2), Gugino (5) and Hope Bodak; Kristine Schmidt and Delaney Gosch.

HITS: LC — Bodak, Chavez 2. Cd’A — Burke 2, Gosch 2, Bakken 2, Linder, Schmidt 2, P. McLaughlin, Moehring. 2B — Gosch, Burke. 3B — Burke.

COEUR d’ALENE 3, POST FALLS 1

Post Falls 000 000 1 — 1 3 2

Coeur d’Alene 100 000 2 — 3 10 0

0 out when winning run scored.

Lexie McCarroll and McKenna Zimmerman; Kristine Schmidt and Delaney Gosch.

HITS: PF — Lozier 2, Dan. Cd’A — Burke 2, Gosch, Bakken 3, McPhedran-Torres, P. McLaughlin 2, Moehring. 2B — Lozier, Dan, Bakken. HR — Lozier, Bakken.

LAKE CITY 6, LEWISTON 4

Lewiston 010 111 0 — 4 7 1

Lake City 200 400 x — 6 6 0

Jenna Barney and Loryn Barney; Kylee Palmer, Layla Gugino (5) and Hope Bodak.

HITS: Lew — Sy. Arellano, Douglass, L. Barney 2, J. Barney 2, Reel. LC — Kolden 2, Gugino, Hill, DeMent, Glenn. 2B — Douglass, Gugino, Hill, Kolden 2. HR — J. Barney 2.

LEWISTON 11, POST FALLS 8

Post Falls 320 012 0 — 8 12 6

Lewiston 311 600 x — 11 11 3

Lexie McCarroll and McKenna Zimmerman; Ashland Schnell, J. Barney (7) and Caitrin Reel.

HITS: PF — Davis, Berg 3, Nye 2, Lozier, Dan, Rouse 2, McCarroll, Zimmerman. Lew — Sy. Arellano 2, Douglass 3, L. Barney 2, J. Barney, No. 13, Reel, Ready. 2B — Rouse, Lozier, Dan, Berg 2. 2B — Sy. Arellano, Douglass 2, J. Barney, Ready, L. Barney. 3B — Douglass. HR — Nye, Sy. Arellano.

4A REGION 1

Moscow 11

Lakeland 1

MOSCOW — After eliminating Sandpoint, second-seeded Lakeland was 10-runned by top-seeded Moscow in the first game of the best-of-3 game 4A Region 1 championship series at the Moscow School District Community Playfields.

Junior Payton Sterling singled and courtesy runner Alyssa Bryne scored on a sacrifice fly in the second inning for Lakeland (7-17).

Senior Amanda Pouchnik hit a two-run home run in the second inning for Moscow (18-6), which can clinch the league’s lone berth to state with a win in Game 2 on Thursday at 3 p.m. in Moscow.

Lakeland 010 00 — 1 4 3

Moscow 420 5x — 11 10 2

Game called in the 5th inning due to 10-run rule.

Emma Avalos and Payton Sterling; Kelly Stodick and Megan Highfill.

HITS: LL — Hanna, Dewey, Sterling, Zimmerman. Mos — Kiblen, Highfill, Pouchnik 2, Robertson, Branen 2, Stodick, Poler, Ristine. 2B — Branen 2, Poler, Pouchnik. HR — Pouchnik.

Lakeland 15

Sandpoint 2

MOSCOW — Junior Kyla Holte had a two-run single in the bottom of the first inning for the Hawks, who scored seven runs in the opening inning to beat the Bulldogs in a loser-out game in the 4A Region 1 tournament at the Moscow School District Playfields.

Sophomore Alexis Hanna had two hits and three runs scored for Lakeland against Sandpoint, which finished 0-25.

Sandpoint 200 00 — 2 3 4

Lakeland 733 2x — 15 4 1

Game called in the 5th inning due to 10-run rule.

Mayle Ducken, Ashlyn Darling (2) and Elizabeth Dysart; Emma Avalos and Payton Sterling.

HITS: Spt — Darling, Dysart, Knowles. LL — Hanna 2, Sterling, Holte. 2B — Knowles, Hanna.

St. Maries 6

Kellogg 1

OROFINO — Stacie Mitchell had an RBI double and later scored on an RBI single by Lexie Brebner in the sixth inning as the top-seeded Lumberjacks pulled away with four runs in the inning and advanced to the championship game of the 2A District 1-2 tournament with a win over the fourth-seeded Wildcats.

“Our bats came alive in the sixth inning, thank goodness,” St. Maries coach Lane Watkins said. “Taci (Watkins) and Stacie really got it going and the entire team just kind of carried it on from there. We played great defensively today and we did a good job at the plate of waiting for our pitch.”

Watkins struck out 14 for St. Maries (17-4), which faces Orofino in the championship game today at 1:30 p.m. for a berth to state. Kellogg (2-11) will face Grangeville in a loser-out game at 11 a.m. today. The second-place game is scheduled for 4:30, with that winner also advancing to state.

Macy Jerome singled to score Allie Hinkelman in the second inning for Kellogg, which eliminated Priest River earlier in the day.

Kellogg 010 000 0 — 1 2 3

St. Maries 002 004 x — 6 7 0

Macy Jerome and Brielle Hei; Taci Watkins and Brenna Elliott.

HITS: Kell — Hei, Jerome. SM — Watkins, Mitchell, Brebner, Sloper 2, Elliott, Thomas. 2B — Mitchell.