Lady Broncos coach finds plenty of positive takeaways in split against Asotin

The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Lady Broncos softball squad picked up its first league win of the season last weekend, picking up a split over the Asotin Panthers in a league doubleheader on the road on April 6.

In what was its most complete game of the season, the Lady Broncos beat the Panthers 4-3 in the first game of the doubleheader. Sophomore Sadie Miller had two doubles in the game, while juniors Madison Miller and Tamera Wolf also had multi-hit games.

The Lady Broncos broke a 3-3 tie in the top of the seventh to go up 4-3 heading into the bottom of the final frame. With junior Cailey Vallone pitching, LRS got the first out of the inning before the next two batters reached base via walks. Vallone bounced back with a much-needed strikeout, but hit the next batter to load the bases with two outs. Vallone kept her cool, however, as the Panthers batter grounded out to Sadie Miller at third base to end the game.

Defensively, head coach Todd O’Brien thought his team had their best performance of the season out in the field. He noted that the errors were down significantly in comparison to games from earlier in the season.

“We came through [defensively], we didn’t lose our cool or composure,” O’Brien said. “We held our composure with the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh, and I was pleased with that.”

The second game of the doubleheader was “a bit of a letdown” for the Lady Broncos, according to O’Brien. LRS fell 15-1 to Asotin in four innings, moving to 1-3 in league play on the season.

The Lady Broncos mustered just four hits in the game, all singles. The Panthers, meanwhile, scored seven runs in the bottom of the first inning and never looked back. LRS didn’t do itself any favors in that first inning, issuing four walks.

“That one kind of got away from us, we got down a little bit and we had multiple errors throughout the ballgame on routine balls that we should have caught,” said O’Brien. “So our defense let ourselves down.”

O’Brien was able to take away plenty of positives from the doubleheader, most important of all being that he was able to see how well his team is capable of playing.

“We went down there and we played well in that first game,” said O’Brien. “And if we can play like that, we can compete with anybody in our league. And like I told the girls, they showed me how good they can play, so [they need to] look out now because I’m expecting it. If we can compete at that level all of the time, we’ll be fine.”

O’Brien also noted that he still doesn’t believe he’s figured out the team’s permanent starting lineup as of yet, and is still toying with players’ positions and placement in the lineup in order to find the best offensive and defensive balance for his team.

The Lady Broncos hosted the Mary Walker Chargers for a doubleheader on April 9. Coverage of that doubleheader will be included in next week’s issue of The Journal.

The next league doubleheader for LRS is on April 13, when they welcome the Reardan Indians to town. First pitch of the first game is scheduled for 2 p.m., with the second game scheduled to begin following a short break after the conclusion of game No. 1.