AURORA | The monkey is finally off the Grandview softball team’s back, as the Wolves have finally tasted victory at the Class 5A state softball tournament.
The Wolves exited in the first round at the Aurora Sports Park three times in the last four seasons, but got their first state win on Friday morning when the No. 13 seed upset No. 5 Arvada West 4-3.
Grandview had designs on another upset bid in the quarterfinals against No. 4 Loveland, as sophomore Ande Troutman hit a pair of solo home runs, but the Wolves fell short in a 6-2 loss to the Indians, who moved on to play No. 1 Legacy in Saturday’s semifinals.
Freshman pitcher Courtney Browne had a strong state debut against Arvada West, working out of trouble on numerous occasions in the later innings to make the four runs the Wolves scored in the second inning stand up.
Grandview finished the season 17-7 in coach Dave Thies’ first season.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555
5A QUARTERFINALS
Loveland 6, Grandview 2
Score by innings (r-h-e):
Grandview 000 101 0 — 2 5 1
Loveland 001 203 x — 3 14 0
5A FIRST ROUND
Grandview 4, Arvada West 3
Score by innings (r-h-e):
Grandview 040 000 0 — 4 6 0
Arvada West 100 001 1 — 3 13 0
