Lady Templars splits four games at Deseret Peak tournament in Tooele last weekend

MANTI — The Manti High varsity softball team opened its season by splitting four games at the Deseret Peak softball tournament over the weekend.

The Lady Templars are at 2-2 overall after the tournament, with losses of 8-2 to Pahrump Valley and 20-12 in eight innings to Logan, followed by wins of 21-0 over LMCA and 13-3 over Layton.

Manti’s highest-scoring game of the weekend came in Friday’s extra-inning loss to Logan, when the Templars scored 12 runs and finished with 14 hits. Paislee Clark went 3 for 4 with a double, a home run and three RBIs, while Dakoda Cheney went 4 for 4 with two doubles, a home run and three RBIs. Danie Alder added two hits, including a home run, and drove in two runs.

The Templars erased an early deficit with a six-run fourth inning and added five more runs in the sixth, but Logan answered with seven runs in the seventh and pushed across the winning run in the eighth to hand Manti the 20-12 loss. Logan finished with 20 hits, while Manti was charged with three errors.

Manti bounced back Saturday with a 13-3 win over Layton. The Templars finished with 10 hits and took advantage of eight Layton errors. Manti broke the game open with eight runs in the second inning and added four more in the third.

Layton scored twice in the first inning, but Manti answered immediately and pulled away. The Lancers managed six hits, and Emily Pauni struck out nine for Layton, though only four of Manti’s 13 runs were earned.

The Templars were scheduled to return home Tuesday against Richfield. Look for coverage on that game in next issue.