ON A ROLL

At the beginning of the high school softball season, the Freeman Scotties weren’t exactly sure who was going to play where. Positions needed to be worked out. Just as importantly, the home field needed to be cleared of snow drifts left over from the February storm that shut the school down for a week.

“This has been one of the most interesting years of softball I’ve ever played,” said University of Great Falls-bound Scotties pitcher Casey Olson. “The way we started out the season, not knowing where everyone was going to be. We had a few issues that we had to work out at the beginning, but we figured it out and we’re all there for each other.”

Come together the Scotties did. They’re playing this weekend in the state Class 1A state tournament.

“Nobody expected us to get this far,” she said. “It’s been awesome.”

The Scotties, 9-6 in league, finished third in the Northeast A League this season, behind 14-1 Lakeside and 9-4 Colfax. Overall, however, Freeman is 16-8 before opening round state tournament play Friday at Franklin Park.

“We knew coming into this season that we had the potential to be pretty decent,” coach Scott Moore said. “But we also knew we had some holes to fill, and there were going to be some bumps along the road. But we had a good feeling about this group.

“Our seniors have been fantastic. Not only are they leaders on the field, they’re the ones on the bench keeping everyone’s head up and keeping them focused. When things don’t go well for them, they get right back after it and don’t let it get them down. They’re focused, they’re driven and they have it all in perspective.”

One of the holes Moore needed to fill was at shortstop. Senior Megan Coumont was All-NEA a year ago at short, but Moore wanted to move her back to centerfield.

“She started at short for us last year, mostly because no one else wanted to,” Moore said. “I think she was so focused on playing good defense at short that she never really got relaxed at the plate. In centerfield she anchors a pretty solid outfield. She’s so much more relaxed out there, and she’s added power to her game. She had seven triples this year, and I doubt she had even one last year.”

Junior Katie Hill stepped in at shortstop without missing a beat.

Meanwhile, senior all-leaguer Kelsey Raines has been a headache for opposing pitchers all season.

“Kelsey Raines is probably the most feared hitter in our league, but at the same time she’s probably the friendliest player in the league,” he said. “When you compete with Kelsey, you know she’s going to give it her all. At the same time, as soon as the game’s over, she’s going to be your best friend.”

Olson, the team’s No. 1 pitcher, has been a team leader on and off the field.

“Casey leads by example,” Moore said. “She’s always been a hard worker, but this year she’s taken her game up a notch. I think part of it is that she realized that it’s her last year here. In everything she does, whether it’s running infield drills or wind sprints, she’s working her tail off to make this team better. We’ve had her at different positions – apart from being a pitcher – and everywhere we put her, she’s giving 110 percent.”

On the mound, however, she’s added a deep confidence to her hard-nosed attitude. Both were on display when she fired a one-hitter at Class 2A Medical Lake early in the season.

“She has so much more confidence in her command that she’s just that much tougher,” the coach said.

“I know I can put the ball where I want it,” she said. “I go after each batter with the attitude that ‘I’m going to get you.’ I’m getting my pitches to move exactly where I want them to.”

Senior Kelsey Scott has bolstered her pitcher’s confidence as well as throwing out base runners who dare steal an extra base.

“She’s been amazing,” Olson said. “Kelsey and I work really, really well together. Off the field we’re good friends, and we talk about what we want to do in a game. And I have total confidence in her that, if I have to throw a ball in the dirt that it’s not going to get by her.

“In the game, if she sees something I don’t, she calls time out and comes out to tell me. We really work well together. It relaxes me knowing she’s back there, because I have so much confidence in her.”

It all came together in the playoffs, Olson said. The team is on a roll heading into the state tourney. The Scotties won the district championship, knocking off Lakeside in the title game.

“When we got into the regional, we were the underdogs in the games we were playing,” Olson said. “We came out and played awesome. Everything was clicking, and it was so much fun to be part of.”

Raines was 4-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, backing Olson’s four-hit effort from the circle as Freeman earned its state tournament berth by stopping Cascade of Leavenworth, 5-3 Saturday at East Wenatchee.

The only thing to slow the Scotties down was a hot pitcher. Chelan’s Kim Harter fired a no-hitter in the regional championship game, fanning 15. Olson was just as tough, scattering four hits and allowing just one earned run in the 2-0 loss, making the Scotties a No. 2 seed in the state tourney.