Nicholson comes up huge in Bulldog win

SANDPOINT — Bri Baldree pitched another gem, and Sierra Nicholson came up huge at the plate, as the Bullogs topped the Badgers 2-1 in a pitcher's duel in the opener of a nonleague softball doubleheader on Tuesday at Sandpoint Middle School.

Bri Baldree threw a one-hitter, striking out 14 batters, and the Bulldogs rallied from a 1-0 deficit to score runs in the bottom of the sixth and seventh inning to pick up a win in a highly-entertaining and sharply played game.
“It's tough to win tough games,” said Bulldogs head coach Elizabeth Hawkins-Williams. “I like that they gutted out a tough game to get the win.”
The hero of the game both offensively and defensively for Sandpoint was Nicholson, whose walk-off double with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning broke a 1-1 tie and propelled the Bulldogs (3-3) to a win in a tightly-contested game.
Kadi Bateman was dealing for the Badgers (10-2), striking out nine in the first game to go with a web gem where she laid out to snag a short pop up, then fired to first for a double play.
Nicholson also flashed some leather, making a key defensive play at third base with the Badgers threatening to keep it a 1-0 game. After Sam Holland's RBI single scored Bri Baldree for the tying run in the sixth inning, Alison Calvert earned a walk in the seventh, then scored when Nicholson scalded a ball into the gap in right center, just underneath the glove of a diving Badger outfielder to plate the winning run.
“She didn't let the environment and situation impact her performance,” praised Hawkins-Williams of Nicholson. “Instead of making excuses, she made the necessary adjustments to be successful.”
It was another double-digit strikout performance for Baldree, who was sharp in mowing through the Badger lineup.
“She worked the zone and kept batters off balance,” described Hawkins-Williams. “They couldn't catch up with her speed.”
Bateman earned the respect of Williams with a quality start of her own.
“She's got incredible control,” said Hawkins-Williams of Bateman. “She's tough. She's going to have a good year.”
In the second game, Audrey Mattila and Kaitlan Ward each pitched for the Bulldogs, and the badgers plated 13 runs in the first two innings to blow the game open, cruising to a 16-10 win in a game that was called due to darkness.
Lauralie Barnes had two RBIs and played solid defense, Holland had an RBI double and scored twice, Nicholson ripped another double to score a run, Ward scored twice and Briana Barlow had an RBI.
Sandpoint hosts Priest River in a doubleheader on Thursday.

Game 1
Bonners Ferry 000 010 0 — 1 1 0
Sandpoint 000 001 1 — 2 6 2

Kadi Bateman and Bennett; Bri Baldree and Sam Holland. W — Baldree. L — Bateman.
HITS: BF — Bateman. Spt — Holland 2, B. Baldree, Calvert, Nicholson 2. 2B — Nicholson 2.