GLADSTONE---The Gladstone High School softball team welcomed the Traverse City St. Francis Gladiators and Charlevoix Rayders to town on Saturday for a full day of action.
The Braves picked up their biggest win of the season by knocking off the undefeated Gladiators, 5-4, before TCSF got even in the nightcap, 13-6.
St. Francis came to the U.P. ranked third in the state in Division Three, and had a perfect 21-0-1 record (they tied their season-opener with Kingsley on a cold April 7 afternoon).
TCSF beat Charlevoix, 8-2, on Gladstone's field Saturday morning to extend their winning streak, but the game with the Braves went down to the wire and ended that streak.
St. Francis grabbed a 2-0 lead in the third inning when Montgomery Pepin struck out Stephanie Schichtel, but the ball got away and a run scored. Then Brooke Meeker singled in the second run.
Gladstone got a run back in the bottom of the third when Laren Sundquist singled home a run, but the Braves stranded two baserunners. Leah Simetz ripped a solo home run in the fourth inning for the Gladiators to put them back ahead, 3-1, but the Braves got it back when Rylee Gerow doubled and scored on a Reese Herioux sacrafice fly.
Gladstone's big inning was the fifth, when Samara Sanville singled and scored on a hit by Lu Martinez to make it 3-3. Then Sunquist ripped a line drive that brought Martinez home and gave Gladstone the lead, and Tia Schone's pop fly landed to score an insurance run.
The Braveshad two on in the bottom of the sixth but couldn't score, and then they had to hang on in the seventh inning. Pepin got the first two outs, but then she walked the next two batters, and gave up a single to Maggie Napoint to bring home the fourth TCSF run.
But Pepin was able to get Schichtel to line out to Kenzie Pepin to end the game.
Montgomery Pepin got the complete game win, striking out eleven batters, walking only two, and scattering five hits. Allee Shepherd took the loss for the Gladiators.
TCSF won the rematch later in the day, 13-6, which was the Braves' third game of the afternoon, after also playing Charlevoix.
The game was back-and-forth, with St. Francis sending eight batters to the plate in the second inning and scoring four times take a 4-0 lead.
Herioux drove in the first Braves run, but Simetz smacked another home run off of Montgomery Pepin to give TCSF a 5-1 lead.
But the Braves scored four runs in the bottom of the inning with a couple of Gladiator errors, along with RBI hits by Schone and Kenzie Pepin. But she was later caught trying to steal the g0-ahead run, so the game stayed tied at 5-5 entering the fourth inning.
TCSF scored three times to take the lead, two of them on a base hit by Hunter St. Peter, and Meeker launched a three-run homer in the fifth inning to help put the game away.
St. Francis had 13 hits in that second game, and the Braves made three errors.
Gladstone improved to 18-5 on the season and will host Escanaba, ranked #3 in the state in Division Two, in a doubleheader on Tuesday. Game times at 4:30 and 6:30 and you can listen on FM-93.5/AM-600, and on-line at www.rrnsports.com.
The Braves picked up their biggest win of the season by knocking off the undefeated Gladiators, 5-4, before TCSF got even in the nightcap, 13-6.
St. Francis came to the U.P. ranked third in the state in Division Three, and had a perfect 21-0-1 record (they tied their season-opener with Kingsley on a cold April 7 afternoon).
TCSF beat Charlevoix, 8-2, on Gladstone's field Saturday morning to extend their winning streak, but the game with the Braves went down to the wire and ended that streak.
St. Francis grabbed a 2-0 lead in the third inning when Montgomery Pepin struck out Stephanie Schichtel, but the ball got away and a run scored. Then Brooke Meeker singled in the second run.
Gladstone got a run back in the bottom of the third when Laren Sundquist singled home a run, but the Braves stranded two baserunners. Leah Simetz ripped a solo home run in the fourth inning for the Gladiators to put them back ahead, 3-1, but the Braves got it back when Rylee Gerow doubled and scored on a Reese Herioux sacrafice fly.
Gladstone's big inning was the fifth, when Samara Sanville singled and scored on a hit by Lu Martinez to make it 3-3. Then Sunquist ripped a line drive that brought Martinez home and gave Gladstone the lead, and Tia Schone's pop fly landed to score an insurance run.
The Braveshad two on in the bottom of the sixth but couldn't score, and then they had to hang on in the seventh inning. Pepin got the first two outs, but then she walked the next two batters, and gave up a single to Maggie Napoint to bring home the fourth TCSF run.
But Pepin was able to get Schichtel to line out to Kenzie Pepin to end the game.
Montgomery Pepin got the complete game win, striking out eleven batters, walking only two, and scattering five hits. Allee Shepherd took the loss for the Gladiators.
TCSF won the rematch later in the day, 13-6, which was the Braves' third game of the afternoon, after also playing Charlevoix.
The game was back-and-forth, with St. Francis sending eight batters to the plate in the second inning and scoring four times take a 4-0 lead.
Herioux drove in the first Braves run, but Simetz smacked another home run off of Montgomery Pepin to give TCSF a 5-1 lead.
But the Braves scored four runs in the bottom of the inning with a couple of Gladiator errors, along with RBI hits by Schone and Kenzie Pepin. But she was later caught trying to steal the g0-ahead run, so the game stayed tied at 5-5 entering the fourth inning.
TCSF scored three times to take the lead, two of them on a base hit by Hunter St. Peter, and Meeker launched a three-run homer in the fifth inning to help put the game away.
St. Francis had 13 hits in that second game, and the Braves made three errors.
Gladstone improved to 18-5 on the season and will host Escanaba, ranked #3 in the state in Division Two, in a doubleheader on Tuesday. Game times at 4:30 and 6:30 and you can listen on FM-93.5/AM-600, and on-line at www.rrnsports.com.
