Great Falls couldn't capitalize on their home-field advantage in their season opener. They fell just short of the Helena Bengals by a score of 8-6 on Tuesday. Great Falls has struggled against Helena recently, as their matchup on Tuesday was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Drew Swingley was huge no matter where she played even without the win. She struck out six batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits. Swingley was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with three RBI and a stolen base.
In other batting news, Landry Moog and Aza Trombley stepped up to the plate in a big way. Moog scored two runs while going 2-for-2, while Trombley scored two runs and stole a base while going 3-for-3. Another player making a difference was Kiran Hazelton, who scored a run while going 3-for-3.
Even though they lost, Great Falls was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .577. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Helena only posted a batting average of .368.
Like Great Falls, Helena also got a great game from a two-way player: Faith Howard. On the mound, she struck out ten batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits (and only one walk). Howard has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks every time she's pitched this season. Howard was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 3-for-5.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kamryn Klemp, who went 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs, and a double. Kelleigh McKay was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
Helena made their fans wait, but they earned their first win of the season to make their record 1-2.
Great Falls will look to defend their home field on Tuesday against Capital at 5:00 p.m. As for Helena, they are on the road again on Tuesday to play Russell at 5:00 p.m. Helena has given up an average of 10 runs per game this season, so hopefully the team got some pitching drills in this week.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
