Pictured is the Calumet softball team. The team includes Bethany Garrow, Lena Myhren, Jaysa Wilds, Millie Loukus, Nevaeha Halley, Molly Erkkila, Audrey Erkkila, Amiina Tarnowski, Ryleigh Johnson, Chloe Coppo, Isabella Coppo, Claire Zubience, Abigayle Harris-Berryman, Lila Hyrkas, Alice Lahti, Claire Ruonavaara, Kaydence Christoferson, and Kaylee Newsom. The team is coached by Joel Rastello and Matt Vertin. (Levi Erkkila/For the Gazette)

MARQUETTE — On Friday, March 29, four Copper Country softball teams made their way to Marquette for the annual Spring Swing Invite. The two-day tournament occurred on the Northern Michigan University’s Superior Dome turf. The Calumet Copper Kings, Hancock Bulldogs, Houghton Gremlins, and Lake Linden-Hubbell Lakes got invited to participate with 13 other teams from the U.P. and Wisconsin.

The Gremlins, Kings, and Lakes took the field four times over the 48 hours, while the Bulldogs played three times. The number of innings in each game varied due to a 75-minute time limit that decided the end of the contest.

Calumet finishes Spring Swing going 1-2-1

The Calumet Copper Kings’ Lena Myhren belted four balls over the fence to win the tournament’s Home Run Queen Award. The honor was given to the player with the most homers during the weekend.

The Copper Kings went four frames with Bark River-Harris in their first game. After falling behind 2-0 after the first, Calumet scored 11 unanswered runs over the next three innings to blow out Bark River 11-2.

Myhren pitched all four innings, allowing two hits and two unearned runs. She also went 2-2 at the plate, with a single, a home run, and a walk, and drove in three runs.

Christoferson had a pair of doubles, an RBI and a run scored. Molly Erkkila hit two doubles, scored one run, and drove in two. Garrow had a double, a home run, two RBIs, and two runs scored.

The Copper Kings faced the Houghton Gremlins in their second matchup. However, the Copper Kings lost nearly as big, 11-1. Audrey Erkkila took the mound and struggled across four innings, giving up 11 earned runs. The Calumet bats did not help Audrey; they managed only three hits and two walks over the 75 minutes. Myhren homered for the Kings’ only run, and Audrey and Molly Erkkila each had a single.

Calumet’s third game was against Menominee, which resulted in a 7-1 defeat. Calumet went to bat at the top of the sixth, but when they failed to tie or take the lead, Menominee wasn’t required to bat at the bottom of the frame. Myhren pitched for the Copper Kings and got banged around for seven runs. Myhren was responsible for the only run, a solo homer in the third; she also doubled. Audrey Erkkila, Bella Coppo, and Zubiena hit singles, and Chloe Coppo doubled.

The Copper Kings played Westwood in their final game and ended the tournament with a 5-5 tie. Newsom took the mound for the entirety of the five-inning game and was responsible for all of Westwood’s runs. Myhren hit a home run, singled, doubled, and had three RBIs and scored a run. Chloe Coppo had two doubles and a walk, one RBI, and one run scored. Bella Coppo scored and hit a single, and Molly Erkkila walked, singled, and scored a run.

Calumet head coach Joel Rastello had some mixed feelings on the weekend.

“I thought we underachieved in a couple of games, but we’re young,” he said. “Some

games they didn’t play with a lot of intensity, but this last game, I thought we should

have won; we played a lot with more intensity and had a little more fun.

“In the first couple of games, you could tell they were nervous, which is good because it means they care, but I think you need to be a little bit more relaxed in this game, as a rule.”

Rastello discussed his thoughts on why the team lost two games.

“We got off to slow starts and bad first innings. Our pitchers were taking a little longer to get in rhythm,” he explained. “The opponents were hitting the ball hard in the first couple of innings, so we were battling to get back into the games, and once you get down, it changes your whole perspective and mood.”

Rastello then talked about the season’s goals and expectations.

“We’ve got all our pitchers back, so we should be able to compete in every game; I think we’re going to be good in that regard,” he said. “We’ve got good hitting, but we had some kids that weren’t here this weekend because of spring break, so we’ll be even better than we were here because we’re going to have three or four starters back.

“I expect us to do better than .500 this year certainly, and I believe we’re going to exceed my expectations in general.”