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Braves softball falls to undefeated Negaunee

BOYNE CITY — Momentum is difficult to reverse once a team has set a course, and the Gladstone softball team ran up against that difficulty in an MHSAA Division 3 Regional 17 semifinal Saturday in Boyne City.

Negaunee jumped ahead in the first, and the Braves couldn’t rally, falling 5-0.

“Ending your season to an undefeated team isn’t so bad,” Braves coach Rick Pepin said. “Lots to be proud of and lots to be excited about for the future. We will be returning several young players that love and will invest effort and energy in the sport and our program.”

The Miners earned three hits in their first three at-bats to set up a 3-0 first inning.

Gladstone’s defense found its footing in the intervening innings — though the same couldn’t be said for the offense — and the status quo didn’t change until the fifth.

“Some early nerves and an error in the first inning allowed Negaunee to grab momentum right away,” Pepin said. “Once we settled in, we played solid defensively and played well enough to win but were never able to get the bats rolling.”

After Negaunee’s Allie Ennett earned a hit, she stole two bases and made it home on a wild pitch to make it 4-0. The Miners added one more before giving up the plate.

However, the Braves wouldn’t have any more luck in the following innings, and — while stemming the bleeding — they were unable to cross home plate.

“Our goal was to make Negaunee play from behind and put pressure on their pitcher, but we never generated that big inning with multiple hits,” Pepin said. “Twice, Samara Sanville came up big for us with hits in the third and sixth inning to give us life, but that’s all we could muster.”

Despite the loss, the Braves do have something to be excited about; the players named All-Region and All-District — many of whom will be returning next year.

Maggie Buckley earned All-Region and All-District honors in the outfield, and Montgomery Pepin was awarded double-honors at pitcher. Reese Herioux and Kenzington Pepin also received dual awards as the designated player and utility, respectively.

Rounding out the All-District awards was Alesha Marenger at first base, Alaina Trudeau at second, Rylee Gerow at third, Marnnea LaFave at shortstop, Aliana Martinez at outfield and Addie Trombley at catcher.

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