Errors doom Boulder City in winners’ bracket final vs. Greenwave

MESQUITE -- After Boulder City stumbled to a 4-1 loss to Churchill County on Friday in the winners' bracket final of the Class 3A state softball tournament, Eagles coach Bruce Reid looked to the past for inspiration.

Specifically, he was thinking about Fernley's 2009 title run, when the Vaqueros lost the first game of the tournament and then won four in a row, including two over the Eagles in the championship series.

The ninth-year Boulder City coach hopes his team can pull off a similar feat.

"Losing is part of the game, and how we come back from this will build character," Reid said. "We just have to stay focused and hit the ball like we can."

The Eagles (30-5) will face Elko in an elimination game at 10 a.m. today at Virgin Valley. The winner advances to the championship series at noon and must defeat Churchill County twice to claim the crown.

Churchill County's Danielle Rothery was 2-for-3 with three RBIs, and winning pitcher Jill Pinder hit two doubles.

Boulder City's Karlee Koopman struck out five and surrendered only one earned run. The Eagles outhit the Greenwave, 7-6.

But four errors put Boulder City in a hole that it couldn't dig out of against error-free Churchill County.

"You can't make errors against a good team," Reid said. "(Koopman) threw well, but (Churchill County) put the bat on the ball and made things happen. We waited to get hits with two outs, and you can't do that."

Boulder City's Taylor McKeever was 2-for-3 with a run, and Alexandra Frye had an RBI single.

■ Boulder City 10, Spring Creek 0 -- Shayla Bennett hit a three-run homer and Koopman added a two-run shot as the Eagles blanked the Spartans in six innings.

Koopman had four strikeouts to earn the win, and McKeever added a double and a triple.

Boulder City's Ariel O'Neill also had a double.