The ’97 Great Falls Sharks 14U Fastpitch Softball team competed in the Montreal Fastpitch Challenge June 30 through July 3 and won 1st place in their division. 16 teams from different parts of Canada, New York and New Hampshire competed in the tournament.
The team made the trek with only ten players able to play and several players battled illness during the trip so most days only nine healthy bodies were able to take the field for the Sharks.
During pool play, the Sharks went 3 and 3, facing the top teams in the tournament, relying primarily on great pitching and superb defense. Pool play featured a dramatic 1-0 victory over the NY Lady Bombers – the team that ultimately won the other division in the competition. The Sharks bats came alive during the single elimination playoff and they won 3 straight games to claim the Cup division championship. The championship run was highlighted by an 18-2 win in the final game.
The 97 Sharks players included Kerry Bush, Jillian Carr, Eleanor Chinn, Haley Falkenberry, Maggie Natal, Caroline Potteiger, Lauren Simons, Nicole Verdin, Molly Viar, and Morgan Wittrock