By KLAS STOLPE
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Sitka High girls softball team got a key road win Thursday, defeating the Thunder Mountain Falcons in Juneau 2-1 to stay in the chase for the Southeast Conference regular season crown.
Wolves senior Miah Dumag again held down the mound with a complete seven inning performance.
Dumag threw just 76 pitches, 57 for strikes, as her fielders handled anything that left the Falcons’ bats. Dumag allowed just 6 hits, the 1 run, and struck out 3 batters while walking 1.
“Miah was great,” Sitka coach Jael McCarty said today. “And our defense had their best game yet.”
Above, Sitka senior Miah Dumag delivers a pitch against Ketchikan during action last week on Moller Field. (Sentinel Photos by Klas Stolpe)
The Wolves struggled to plate runners against TMHS’ Penina Fenumiai who struck out 11 Sitka hitters in the complete game loss (7 IP, 126 P, 87 S, 8 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB). Sitka left 7 runners on base, TMHS 4.
“It was great pitching by Thunder Mountain,” McCarty said. “Our girls were going deep into counts. We had several at bats that our girls were fouling the ball off and battling for 8 or 10 or more pitch at-bats. Sometimes we didn’t win the at-bat, but no complaints here.”
Sitka’s first run came in the top of the second inning as freshman Chloe Morrison led off with a single to center field, advanced to second on a sacrifice ground ball to the third baseman by senior Nyla Duncan, and scored on a single to center field by sr. Calista Gallant.
Sitka sophomore Grace Harang bunts. (Sentinel Photos by Klas Stolpe)
Thunder Mountain tied the game with a run in the bottom of the third as Aspen Kasper walked and with 1 out, tagged up on a long fly ball from Mariah Tanuvasa Tuvaifale to score.
Sitka put their winning run across in the top of the fifth inning. With one out sr. Kyleigh McArthur singled to left field and scored on a double to right field by Dumag.
Dumag then got the Falcons side to hit into three straight outs in the bottom half.
Dumag allowed a lead-off single to Tanuvasa Tuvaifale in the bottom of the sixth and then fielded a sacrifice bunt and threw out the batter to Morrison at first base and then struck out the next hitter, and Gallant fielded a ground ball on the run in left field from the Falcons’ Fenumiai and cut down Tanuvasa Tuvaifale at home plate with McArthur making the tag.
In the bottom of the seventh McArthur caught a foul ball out from her catcher’s position and sr. Abby Forrester fielded a long fly ball for two outs. Dumag allowed a single before fielding the final out of the game on a grounder back to the mound.
Dumag, sophomore Tyla Gleason, sr. Avery Voron, Morrison, Duncan, and Gallant recorded 1 hit apiece in the game; Gallant had 1 RBI; Morrison and McArthur 1 run each.
Sitka freshman first baseman Chloe Morrison puts out a Ketchikan runner. The Wolves are playing on the road in Juneau today and Saturday. (Sentinel Photos by Klas Stolpe)
Sitka will play JDHS today (7 p.m.), TMHS on Saturday (11 a.m.), and JDHS again on Saturday (6:30 p.m.).
KTN plays TMHS today (7 p.m.), JDHS on Saturday (11 a.m.) and TMHS on Saturday (4 p.m.), also in Juneau. The Lady Kings defeated JDHS 13-0 Thursday.
Sitka is 6-1 in conference play (8-2 overall), Ketchikan 5-2 (10-4), Thunder Mountain 3-4 (4-4), and Juneau-Douglas 0-7 (0-9). Sitka travels to Ketchikan for a two-game series next weekend. All teams meet in Sitka on May 23-25 for the Southeast Region V Tournament on Moller Field.
A team can advance to the State Tournament in Anchorage by having the best regular season record which would be an automatic bid to state as the Southeast Conference number two seed for the state championships; or they can win the SE Region V Tournament and earn the SE number one state tourney seeding. If the regular season winner also wins the conference tournament, the tournament runner-up advances to state as the number two seed. If the regular season winner does not make the conference tourney championship game or loses in the championship game, that conference championship game winner advances as the SE state number one seed.
