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Marquette’s Ada Mohrman, left, slides safely home during the District 11 tournament championship game of Little League Minor Division softball against Portage Lake on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, at Houghton High School. (Daily Mining Gazette photo by Daver Karnosky)

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Marquette pitcher Ella Dickinson winds up to deliver a pitch during the District 11 tournament championship game of Little League Minor Division softball against Portage Lake on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, at Houghton High School. (Daily Mining Gazette photo by Daver Karnosky)

Marquette pitcher Ella Dickinson winds up to deliver a pitch during the District 11 tournament championship game of Little League Minor Division softball against Portage Lake on Tuesday at Houghton High School. (Daily Mining Gazette photo by Daver Karnosky)

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By DAVER KARNOSKY

Daily Mining Gazette, Houghton

HOUGHTON — The District 11 tournament championship game in Little League Minor Division softball had plenty of intrigue on Tuesday evening.

But after a back-and-forth start, Portage Lake busted this finale wide open with a 13-run third inning to take a 19-4 victory and advance to the state tournament being played in Cheboygan beginning next Thursday.

In other District 11 tourneys, in Majors baseball elimination games on Tuesday, PL downed Ishpeming 23-3 in five innings and Marquette dropped Baraga-Lake of the Clouds 8-2.

In another elimination game scheduled for Wednesday, Marquette was taking on PL, while in the winner’s bracket that same day, Negaunee was to face Keweenaw.

Back in the Minors softball final, the home squad playing at the Houghton High School field jumped out to a 4-0 lead only to have their visitors from the south and east cut it to one, 4-3. PL re-extended the lead to 6-3 before Marquette got it back to 6-4.

And then the third inning happened.

Portage Lake, a team loaded with veteran players, was happy to earn the win, especially since their players had to find a way to dig deep to do it.

“It was exciting for the girls,” Portage Lake assistant coach Travis Hanson said. “They had to battle a little adversity. (Marquette) put some runs up on us, which (was because) we made some errors in the field, but they made it work at the plate. Our girls made it work.”

Fifteen of the 16 batters made plays that added to the run production in that climatic third inning that also ended the game due to the 15-run rule.

“It was just battling that adversity, coming back, and then being patient at the plate, because there weren’t a lot of strikes, but the ones that were, we had to sit on it and wait for the ball to come to us,” Hanson said. “We had some great hits by Ivy Markham out there. Reagan Riley had a big hit.

“So, yeah, it was just being patient, and letting the ball travel to us before we got on it.”

On the other side, Marquette assistant coach Corey Hanycz was proud of the way his team battled back from the early 4-0 deficit with three runs in the second.

“It was a good game,” he said. “I knew if we started hitting the ball, we’d get runners on and be scoring. I knew that was going to be the case.

“They stayed energetic. They kept their heads up, and they just have a ‘fight’ attitude.

“They never give up. They work hard and they just keep grinding. That’s what I respect about these girls.”

Playing her first game of the tourney for PL, Markham went 2 for 3, while teammate McKinley Soli walked twice and reached on a fielder’s choice in the slot ahead of Markham in the order. Kylie Helminen and Hadley Koski each walked twice, while Ivy Biekkola took one walk as four of those five players scored two runs apiece.

“We talked about making some defensive changes, or making some lineup changes in the batting order now that Ivy’s back,” Hanson said. “It’s like really throwing (them all in) a basket and picking out numbers, because all those girls can hit anywhere in the lineup, and all those girls can play a lot of positions.”

Hancyz feels that his Marquette team learned a lot from the tournament and that should bode well for their future in the sport.

“Our Marquette girls are talented,” he said. “They’re hard workers. They’re good, coachable kids.

“I think it just comes (down) to an experience thing. (Portage Lake is) a little bit more experienced. This group of girls, I think, will move up and play in the years to come, and they’re going to grow, and they’re going to be bigger and better players.”

Portage Lake got to work quickly in the game to decide the championship. Avery Pietila was hit by a pitch to lead off, then stole second base just before Allie Mettlach was also hit by a pitch.

Anna Hanson sacrificed to move both into scoring position, with Pietila scoring on a passed ball and Mettlach coming around on a Riley single. A series of walks, passed balls and stolen bases brought in two more to make it 4-0.

Marquette worked its way back into the game in the second.

That’s when Ada Mohrman walked and stole second, and after Kynlee Hanycz walked, Mohrman and Hanycz each scored on separate errors.

Emily Trdan laid down a bunt to reach first, later scoring on a single to right field by Everly Ventimeglia to get the visitors back within a single run.

In the bottom half of the second, Portage Lake re-established a 6-3 advantage.

Koski began with a walk, and after Pietila singled back to pitcher Ella Dickinson, both runners stole a base. Then each scored on separate passed balls. There were two close plays, Koski called safe at third and Koski later scoring, that Marquette appealed, but neither call was overturned.

In the top of the third, Marquette answered with two runs.

Kelsey Anderson walked, stole second and got to third on an error, scoring on a single to center by Dickinson that made it a 6-4 PL.

In Portage Lake’s big rally, Riley led off with a single to center, while Heinonen singled to second base. After Soli walked to load the bases, Riley scored on a passed ball.

Markham hit a two-run double to center, and after Helminen walked, Markham came home on a passed ball.

After another passed ball and a double by Pietila to center each scored another run, Mohrman came on in relief for Marquette.

But much of the same happened, with Anna Hanson and Riley singling, followed later by Markham cracking a double to center that cleared the bases.