It looked tough on paper, and it ended up being even tougher than anyone could have imagined.  

Defending Class 1A State Champions and #1 seed Kee made it look easy against #8 seed Montezuma in the quarterfinal round of the State Softball Tournament on Monday, winning convincingly, 18-1. 

The young Bravettes got a solid outing from their defense and junior pitcher Hanna Jones, as she shut out one of the best offenses in the state in four of the seven innings. Unfortunately, the innings where the Hawks scored runs turned out to be big innings. 

Five runs would score in the second, four in the fifth, and nine in the seventh. With that, Montezuma will get a great opportunity to rebound and win a game during their maiden voyage to the State Softball Tournament. They’ll face a familiar foe in #5 Colfax-Mingo, who along with #6 Belle Plaine and #7 Sigourney, represent the South Iowa Cedar League with the Bravettes. Sigourney was the only team from the SICL to win in the quarterfinals. 

Monte has not had good luck against the Tigerhawks in 2017, losing at home on May 31st, 3-1, and dropping the game in Colfax on June 26th, 11-1. Both teams are playing different ball these days, and the matchup should be fun. 

First pitch is scheduled for Tuesday morning at 9 AM at Buena Vista University Field at Rogers Sports Complex in Fort Dodge. Coverage begins on 104.9 FM KBOE, kboeradio.com, and the KBOE mobile app around 8:45 AM. Winner of the game will play Wednesday in the 5th Place Game, while loser will play in the 7th Place Game.