Jackets Fall to Jacks in Easton Semifinals (Apr. 3, 2005)
Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score

MODESTO, CA – The Montana State-Billings softball team wrapped up a successful Easton Tournament of Champions on Sunday, advancing to the Gold Bracket semifinals before falling to fourth-ranked Humboldt State.  The Yellowjackets were 4-2 at the tournament with both losses coming at the hands of the Lumberjacks, who won the tournament to improve to 40-1 on the season.

MSU Billings moved to 20-10 overall with the six games at the Easton Tournament of Champions.  Along with the two losses to Humboldt State, the Jackets defeated Western Washington, Central Washington, Hawaii Pacific, and Western Oregon at the tourney.  They return to Billings on Monday and will host Chaminade on Tuesday in the Yellowjackets’ PacWest Conference home opener.  MSUB is 3-3 in the PacWest with 12 conference home games remaining.  The Jackets and Silverswords play at 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday at Cenex Stadium.

The Yellowjackets defeated Western Oregon, 4-2, in the Gold Bracket quarterfinals Sunday morning to advance to their semifinal match up with Humboldt.  Joey Ehnes (Sr., Great Falls, MT) earned the victory to improve to 15-7.  She pitched 6 2/3 innings after replacing Rachel Quarnburg (So., Billings, MT) in the first.  Quarnburg allowed two runs while recording just one out.  Ehnes struck out nine in the game, including all three outs of the seventh inning.

The Jackets struck back in the bottom half of the first with two runs to tie the game.  Cami Rainey (Sr., Terreton, ID) led off the inning with a triple.  Ehnes followed with a double to score Rainey, and Theresa Campbell (Sr., Great Falls, MT) singled to drive in Ehnes for the tying run.

The Yellowjackets scored two runs in the bottom of the third inning and Ehnes held the Wolves scoreless the rest of the way.  Jenna Haacke (Fr., Billings, MT) drove in both of the Jackets’ fourth inning runs with an RBI double, plating Ehnes and Campbell.  Rainey was 2-for-3 in the game with a triple and a run scored.

After rallying to defeat the Yellowjackets 3-2 in eight innings on Saturday, Humboldt State controlled Sunday’s game from the start for a 4-0 victory.  The Lumberjacks have won an impressive 28 games in a row and are guaranteed to be the top-ranked team in the West Region when the regional poll is released this week.

Humboldt scored all four runs in the bottom of the first inning off Yellowjacket starter Megan McCrae (Sr., Brandon, Manitoba).  The Lumberjacks’ three first inning hits were helped by two Yellowjacket errors.  Ehnes replaced McCrae with two outs in the first, pitching 6 1/3 innings without allowing a run.  She struck out three.

The Yellowjackets threatened in each of the first three innings.  They had runners on first and second in all three innings but came up empty handed.  A line drive double play ended their last threat in the third inning.  Humboldt’s Tracy Motzney went the distance for the win, allowing just three hits. 

The Jackets’ Sara Hanley (Sr., Kalispell, MT) was named to the all-tournament team after hitting .529 for the weekend.  Ehnes was left off the all-tourney team despite going 4-2 with an ERA of 0.53.