Baseball: Butte shakes off Flathead rally for 5-4 win
BUTTE — Flathead’s season came to an end Friday afternoon as Butte survived a late Braves rally for a 5-4 baseball win that clinched a State AA tournament berth for the Bulldogs. Flathead (7-14) outhit Butte (8-9) 5-1 and erased a 4-1 deficit, but the Bulldogs capitalized on walks and wild pitches to escape in the bottom of the seventh inning. Butte grabbed a 2-0 lead in the opening inning after a passed ball brought home two runs.
The Bulldogs added another in the third when Kodye Kjersten worked a bases-loaded walk. Despite the deficit, Flathead stayed within striking distance behind Eli Coopman. The Braves pitcher Eli Coopman allowed one hit over six innings while striking out seven.
Though he walked five Bulldogs and hit three, just one of the four runs he allowed was earned. Flathead broke through in the sixth inning with one run before delivering its biggest rally in the seventh. The Braves scored three runs in the frame and tied the game at 4-4 behind an RBI double from Dillon Wink and a two-run double from Hunter Fann, a shot into the gap.
Butte won the game in the bottom half without recording a hit. Cole Solomon drew a walk before courtesy runner Troy Samson advanced on a wild pitch. Samson scored the winning run on another wild pitch Chase Lubick earned the win for Butte; he struck out seven across 6 1/3 innings.
Tegan Duffy recorded the Bulldogs’ lone hit of the game. As the lower-seeded team, Flathead had to beat Butte twice to advance to State, which Butte hosts. The Bulldogs needed to win just once.