The Soldotna girls moved to the semifinals of the Division II state softball tournament in Anchorage, while Kenai Central stayed alive in the playback bracket in Friday action.
In the opening round, Soldotna defeated Delta 19-11. The Stars then faced a matchup with Northern Lights Conference champion Kodiak. SoHi won 14-2 to move to 2-3 this season against the Bears.
Soldotna plays Sitka at 9:30 a.m., with the winner moving to the championship at 2:30 p.m. The Stars lost 16-4 to Sitka on Thursday in the round-robin portion of the tournament.
Kenai started its day with a 14-9 loss to Ketchikan to fall into the playback bracket. The Kards went into the game with Kodiak 0-4 against the Bears this season, but notched a 6-4 win to stay alive in the tournament.
Kenai faces Ketchikan at 9:30 a.m., with the winner of that game playing the Soldotna-Sitka loser at noon to get to the title game. The Kards are 0-2 against Ketchikan this season.
Soldotna 14, Kodiak 2
Tatum Cooper had a big game from the leadoff spot as the Stars (26-9-1) dispatched the Bears in four innings.
Cooper had a home run and was 4 for 4 with three runs and four RBIs. Isabelle Cruz also had a home run and was 1 for 2 with two runs and three RBIs.
Also, Kacey Cunningham was 2 for 3, Katie DeBardelaben and Aliya Blough each had two runs, and Izzy Jones was 2 for 2 with two runs.
Cruz went all four innings for the win, giving up two runs on three hits while walking one and striking out three.
Kenai 6, Kodiak 4
The Kardinals took a 6-2 lead after the fifth inning and held on for the victory to move to 19-18 overall.
Avery Ellis turned in a sterling performance on the mound, going all seven innings and giving up four runs — one earned — one four hits while walking four and striking out eight.
Kailey Stynsberg went 3 for 4 with two runs for the Kardinals, while Blakeley Jorgensen was 2 for 4 with two RBIs.
Soldotna 19, Delta 11
The Stars scored nine runs in the bottom of the second inning to take command in the five-inning game.
SoHi filled the boxscore on offense starting with Katie DeBardelaben hitting a home run on the way to a 3 for 3, two-run, four-RBI performance.
Also, Tatum Cooper was 2 for 4 with two RBIs, Isabella Gares was 3 for 4 with three runs and three RBIs, Isabelle Cruz scored twice, Alyssa McDonald was 3 for 4 with three runs and three RBIs, Kacey Cunningham was 3 for 5 with two runs and two RBIs, Lilly Dawley was 2 for 4 with two runs, Juliet Innes was 2 for 3 and Izzy Jones scored three times.
On the mound, DeBardelaben gave up three runs on two hits without recording an out, but Cruz worked all five, giving up eight runs — five earned — on seven hits.
Ketchikan 14, Kenai 5
The Kardinals fell in the opening round to the Kings in a seven-inning game.
Kenai had the game tied at 5 after three innings, but Ketchikan controlled the action after that.
Seylor Tomrdle led the Kards at the plate by going 2 for 4 with a run, while Lola McEwen had two RBIs.
McEwen pitched all seven for Kenai, giving up 14 runs — three earned — on 14 hits.
