Bulldogs put up fight, but fall short to Hillman in nine-inning regional final loss

PELLSTON – They battled, and battled, and battled some more.

One thing was certain on Saturday – the Inland Lakes Bulldogs weren’t going to go down without a fight against the Hillman Tigers in their Division 4 softball regional championship showdown.

However, a valiant effort fell just short for the Bulldogs, who were edged out in a 13-10 loss in a thrilling nine-inning final in Pellston.

“It was a great day overall, we played good ball, and there’s nothing to be upset about or down about,” said Inland Lakes coach Krissi Thompson. “It was two big games that day, and we just came up a little short in the final.”

Looking to win their first regional title since 2017 – the year they won their first-ever state championship – the Bulldogs (22-9-1) found themselves in a 5-0 hole early in the contest. But instead of falling behind even more, the Bulldogs staged a furious rally that saw them take a 9-8 lead going into the top of the sixth inning.

The Tigers ended up tying the game at 9-9 in the top of the sixth, then both teams failed to score in the seventh as the game headed to extras.

In the bottom of the eighth, the Bulldogs had a chance to score with multiple runners on base and just one out. However, Hillman sophomore pitcher Nicole Barbeau got out of the jam, which helped send the game to the ninth.

The Tigers made the most of their opportunity in the ninth, scoring four runs and taking control of the contest. While the Bulldogs did score a run in the 10th, it wasn’t enough to top Barbeau and the Tigers, who claimed a regional crown for a second consecutive season.

Despite the loss, Thompson praised the overall play of her team, which showed resiliency at different points and had offensive success against Barbeau, a terrific pitcher.

“They executed well,” Thompson said. “They laid bunts down, they hit the ball when needed, they ran the bases. Defensively we had a couple errors that cost us a few runs that ultimately may have hurt us in the game, but it’s a learning process, they’re young, and we look forward to next year and being an even stronger and more dominant team.

“I was very proud of the girls. (Barbeau) throws great. Our pitchers did struggle a little. Lexi (Kovtun), Maggie (Grant) struggled just slightly, but everybody did their part, and it was minimal errors so we’re very happy with how the girls played and how everything turned out.”

At the plate, Wandrie led the Bulldogs with three singles, while Ryann Clancy had two singles and an RBI. Kovtun doubled.

Grant took the loss on the mound for Inland Lakes, striking out five, allowing nine hits and walking six in 3 ¾ innings pitched. Kovtun pitched 3 ¼ innings of relief, striking out one and allowing six hits. Megan Vigneau, Brooklyn LaBrecque, Erica Taglauer and Emily Van Daele each recorded singles.

With the win, the Tigers advance to play Pickford – an 11-4 regional semifinal winner over Norway on Saturday – in a 5 p.m. Division 4 state quarterfinal matchup at Sault Ste. Marie on Tuesday.

The Bulldogs advanced to the regional final with a 19-7 semifinal victory over Ellsworth.

Wandrie’s double, two singles and four RBI’s fueled the Bulldogs’ offense, which received four singles and an RBI from Van Daele, a double and a single from Clancy, two singles from Kovtun, and a single and two RBI from Caitlin Jones. Adding singles were LaBrecque and Taglauer.

Kovtun earned the win on the mound, striking out eight, walking five and allowing three hits.

Saturday marked the end of another solid campaign for the Bulldogs, who earned their first district championship since 2018 and were one of the top teams in the Ski Valley Conference.

“From what we started with and some of the issues we ran into this season, overall, we’re happy with the way we finished and how the girls overcame all obstacles and came together and made it this far,” Thompson said.

For Thompson, she’ll miss the senior trio of Alyssa Byrne, Van Daele and Vigneau, who played their final games on Saturday.

“Every year you see some of your best kids leave the program,” Thompson said. “It’s a never-ending cycle, it’s a bummer to see them go, but they’re going to move on to do great things.”

At the same time, the future looks bright for the Bulldogs, who will return a plethora of talented players in 2023.

“We may be losing three seniors, but we’ll still have 10-11 strong players on our team,” Thompson said. “We’re pretty excited about that and my pitchers are young, so they’re only going to improve over time. We’re pretty excited for what the next couple years bring.”

Pellston knocked out by Tigers in semis  

PELLSTON – The season also came to a close for the Pellston Hornets, who suffered an 8-1 loss to Hillman in the first regional semifinal on Saturday.

Senior pitcher Madison Brown was strong through the opening three innings for the Hornets, but the Tigers built a big lead with five runs in the fourth.

“That game was scoreless heading into the fourth (inning), (Nicole) Barbeau threw hard, but we had chances here and there,” said Pellston coach Randy Bricker. “We just didn’t get the big hit, but Madison (Brown) held them in check. She gave up some runs in the fourth, so it was a very competitive and respectable game. We handled ourselves well.”

Brown was the losing pitcher, striking out nine and allowing eight hits.

Brown, Madison Jutson and Haleigh Bohn tallied the lone hits for Pellston (16-19) against Barbeau, who was stellar on the mound. 

“(Nicole) Barbeau seemed very focused, she was hitting her spots in the game, and we just couldn’t put a bat on the ball,” Bricker said. “We mustered a couple hits, but that was it.”

Bricker was pleased with the improvement of his team during a campaign in which the program won a first district title since 2018.

“I thought it was a good season,” Bricker said. “The team improved a lot, so we’re very happy about that. We achieved our goal of winning the district championship and improving every day.”

The tough part for the Hornets will be replacing its two seniors – Emma Irwin and Brown – who were both instrumental in the team’s success this spring.

“Obviously Madison (Brown), you don’t get girls like Madison very often," Bricker said. "It’s going to be some tough shoes to fill, but we’re going to work our tails off in the offseason. Madison’s going to be missed and Emma’s (Irwin) going to be missed in centerfield. She covered a lot of ground for us this season.”

The good news is the Hornets bring back many quality players for next season.

“We’re excited about the program,” Bricker said. “We got a couple of freshmen who started all year. Megan (Bricker), Gabby (Landon), Elysia (Ward) and Caroline (Crenshaw) are all coming back, they’re all excited, and we’re going to get some good quality eighth graders coming up as freshmen next year.

“We’re excited to see what we can put together.”

This article originally appeared on Cheboygan Daily Tribune: Inland Lakes softball loses to Hillman in regional final