ST. GEORGE — Local high school softball teams wrapped up their nonregion schedules over the weekend as the beginning of Region 10 play is slated for next week.
At Snow Canyon High School Saturday, the Warriors completed a series of four tournament games in two days on their home diamond.
In the evening contest, Snow Canyon pitcher Jenna Thorkelson threw five solid innings and Emma Daniel and Avery Thorkelson each hit home runs to lead the Warriors to an 8-2 victory over Farmington.
“We’ve got a very young team,” Snow Canyon coach Markay Thorkelson told St. George News after the win. “We’re just kind of having them come to the point where they need to believe in themselves, and they did that tonight.”
“They stepped up to the plate and went at a really good pitcher right there and kind of executed what we’ve been talking about,” she added.
The Warriors were the visitors on their home field against Farmington since it was technically a neutral tournament contest.
Snow Canyon attacked Farmington’s starting pitcher Delaney Baker right from the start. Anyssa Montano hit an RBI single to score Kylie Hardy and the Warriors led 1-0 after leaving the bases loaded in the top of the first.
Then Daniel connected on her two-run homer in the top of the third, crushing the ball well out of the park to take a 3-0 advantage.
Avery Thorkelson’s three-run blast came in the top of the fifth, a moonshot that was hit so far it might have landed on the football field.
The Warriors took advantage of a couple of Farmington errors and then a fielder’s choice to plate two more runs and Snow Canyon led 8-0.
Coach Thorkelson was delighted to see some pop in the lineup.
“We do have some power, definitely,” she said. “We’ve got some young girls that are just learning, but they’re talented and it will be great to watch what they can do.”
Defensively, the highlight of the game came in the bottom of the fifth. Center fielder Hardy stole a homer away from Farmington, leaping above the wall to pluck the softball from the air.
And then on the mound Jenna Thorkelson was in control. Her best frame was the bottom of the fourth, when she got two strikeouts and a pop up to retire the Farmington side in order.
“Pitching, we had a good game there. Moving the ball around and keeping them off balance,” coach Thorkelson said. “So that was a good gameplan.”
Overall it was a rocky tournament performance for the Warriors (5-5), who fell in their other three games over the weekend– they lost 8-5 to Bountiful and 7-0 to Uintah on Friday, then were defeated 8-7 by Canyon View in the Saturday nightcap.
“It was definitely good to get this bounce back game,” coach Thorkelson said. “It was a long day yesterday, play early and play late, and a lot of in-between time. I think the girls were pretty exhausted by the end of the day.”
Now the Warriors turn their attention to Region 10 play, which for them starts on Tuesday at Pine View for the first game of a home-and-home set against the Panthers at 7 p.m.
“We want to be able to keep other teams on their toes,” coach Thorkelson said. “We feel like we have a great one-two punch with our pitchers. We hope to utilize both of them to keep other teams guessing where we’re going with it.”
In other Region 10 games on Tuesday, Crimson Cliffs is at Cedar starting at 3 p.m., while Desert Hills is at Hurricane, with the opening pitch scheduled for 7 p.m.
Photo Gallery
Snow Canyon against Farmington in a nonregion softball game, St. George, Utah, March 19, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News
Snow Canyon against Farmington in a nonregion softball game, St. George, Utah, March 19, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News
Snow Canyon against Farmington in a nonregion softball game, St. George, Utah, March 19, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News
Snow Canyon against Farmington in a nonregion softball game, St. George, Utah, March 19, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News
Snow Canyon against Farmington in a nonregion softball game, St. George, Utah, March 19, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News
Snow Canyon against Farmington in a nonregion softball game, St. George, Utah, March 19, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News
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