Lady Broncos sweep Tekoa-Rosalia, finish 5-5 in league

The end of the regular season is drawing nearer for the Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Lady Broncos softball team, as they ended league play on a high note last week.

The week started with a home non-league doubleheader against the Wilbur-Creston Wildcats. The Lady Broncos would fall in the first game in extra innings, 7-8, and head coach Todd O'Brien said that his team came out flat against the Wildcats.

The LRS defense committed six errors in the game, compared to Wilbur-Creston's two. O'Brien's noted in the past that the defense had been improving throughout the year, but was concerned by his team's defense in both of the games against the Wildcats.

Sophomore Sadie Miller had two doubles in the game, and senior Lacey Miller went 2-2 with a double and two walks. The rest of the team had just two hits combined.

The Lady Broncos poured on the runs in the second game, much of it due to free passes doled out by the Wilbur-Creston pitcher. LRS was walked or hit by a pitch nine times in the game, which helped contribute to a 15-5 win in five innings.

Lacey Miller added another double on the day, finishing 3-4 with two doubles and four walks. Leadoff hitter Madison Miller was 2-2 in the game, with a double and two walks.

"We didn't play that well [on the day,]" said O'Brien. "We came out in that second game and we didn't turn it on that much more. We only had six hits. So I chalk up [the team's performance on the day] to overlooking an opponent. We just didn't play well."

The team turned it around for the final league doubleheader of the season against the Tekoa-Rosalia Timberwolves at home on April 27. LRS won both games, finishing league play 5-5 and finishing in a tie for third place in the NE 2B South Division.

With the game tied at 9-9 in the bottom of the sixth, the Lady Broncos bats came alive one final time on the day, scoring three runs to take a 12-9 lead heading into the final inning, with LRS able to finish it out defensively.

Freshman Colette Nichols went 3-4 on the day with four RBI's to help pace LRS, while No. 8 hitter senior Hannah Britain also finished with three hits and drove in two runs. Lacey Miller had another great day at the plate, finishing 2-3 with a triple and a double.

O'Brien was pleased with junior Cailey Vallone's performance on the mound, particularly in the second game of the doubleheader, with the Lady Broncos winning 12-2. Vallone gave up just four hits in the second game, and the LRS defense committed just one error, as well.

Five LRS batters notched two hits in game No. 2, including Brittain and No. 9 hitter Kelsey Billigmeier. Nichols, Sadie Miller and Kaylin Olson also each had two hits in the game, which was called after the sixth inning due to the 10-run rule.

LRS finishes out regular season play this week with non-league tilts against Riverside and Freeman, both 1A schools. The Riverside doubleheader took place on May 1, and coverage will be included in next week's issue. The Lady Broncos will travel to Freeman on May 3 for their final doubleheader of the season before the playoffs.

The Lady Broncos ended up winning the tiebreaker over Asotin and was awarded the No. 3 seed in the district tournament, allowing them to avoid a play-in game against Mary Walker. LRS will take on Chewelah-the North's No. 2 seed-on May 14 at 3 p.m., with the game being played in Chewelah.