LRS softball season ends in District Tournament

Brandon Cline, Managing Editor | Last updated May 23, 2019 9:51am0

Photo courtesy of Roger Harnack/The Statesman-Examiner count

Senior catcher Lacey Miller tries to apply the tag on a play at the plate in the Lady Broncos' 11-2 loss to the Chewelah Cougars in their first game of the Northeast 2B District Tournament on May 14. Miller was voted as the League MVP by coaches in the South Division.

The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Lady Broncos softball season came to an end over the weekend in the Northeast 2B District Tournament, as the team came up one win shy of guaranteeing a second consecutive berth to the 2B State Tournament.

The Broncos, the No. 3 seed from the South Division, opened the double-elimination tournament on May 14 with a tilt against the Chewelah Cougars, the No. 2 seed from the North Division. Chewelah finished regular season league play 6-2, with their only losses coming against the Northwest Christian Crusaders, who would go on to win Districts.

Chewelah's bats got off to a quick start, scoring three runs in both the first and second inning to jump out to an early 6-0 lead. LRS would get a run back in the third inning and the fifth inning, but it wasn't enough to keep up with a potent Cougars lineup, as Chewelah would go on to win 11-2.

The Lady Broncos scattered four hits throughout the game, compared to nine hits for the Cougars. Fielding has been an issue all season long for LRS and it was again in this game, as the Lady Broncos defense committed five errors in the field while Chewelah didn't commit any.

The loss dropped the Lady Broncos to the consolation side of the bracket, and faced the Davenport Gorillas in a loser-out game on May 18.

The game was the third time the two teams have faced off this season, with the first two games being played as part of a doubleheader in Davenport on March 26. The teams split the doubleheader, with Davenport winning the first game 14-13 and LRS winning the second game 17-14.

This game would prove to be another high-scoring, close affair. But in the end, the Lady Broncos ultimately came out on top, narrowly defeating the Gorillas 10-9 to extend their season at least one more game.

It was a quick turnaround for LRS, getting very little time off before playing their next game in the tournament, against the Liberty Lancers. The two teams had met for a doubleheader in the regular season on April 20 in Liberty, with the Lancers winning both games, 9-4 and 15-3.

The Lady Broncos stuck around much better in this game, which ended up being a low-scoring game. But Liberty would once again come out victorious, narrowly defeating LRS 5-4 and ending the Lady Broncos' season. The Lancers advanced to the 3rd/4th place game, where both teams would advance to the 2B State Tournament regardless.

LRS ends the season with a 10-13 record. Senior catcher Lacey Miller ended her high school career with a bang, being voted the South Division League MVP and to the All-Opponent team by coaches. Sophomore Sadie Miller was also voted to the All-Opponent team by coaches.