Softball Recap: Rifle Comes Up Short

Palisade hit Rifle with a four-run third inning on Tuesday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Bears fell just short of the Bulldogs by a score of 7-6. The Bears haven't had much luck with the Bulldogs recently, as the team has come up short the last three times they've met.

Gia Keithley

Batters Struck Out

09/02/25 @ Palisade	7
08/30/25 @ Montrose	5
08/27/25 vs Grand Junction	5

Gia Keithley put in work while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over 6.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and six unearned) runs off ten hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 1-for-4 with two RBI and one double.

In other batting news, Rylan Petree made the most of her time in the batter's box despite the final result and went 3-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one stolen base. Brynn Axelson was another key player, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one double.

Rifle's loss dropped their record down to 4-3. As for Palisade, the win got them back to even at 2-2.

Coming up, Rifle will take on Longmont at 1:00 p.m. on Friday. As for Palisade, they will square off against Rocky Mountain at 1:00 p.m. on Friday.