Capital softball tops Butte High with big third and fourth innings

A third-inning push and a fourth-inning burst gave Helena Capital the cushion it needed to stop a two-game slide Tuesday at Stodden Park, where the Bruins beat Butte High 7-4 in Western AA softball.

Capital turned a close game into control almost all at once. The Bruins scored three runs in the third inning and added four more in the fourth, then carried a 7-1 lead into the fifth. That early separation mattered because Butte answered with three runs in the fifth, cutting into the margin and making the finish uncomfortable, but the Bulldogs never got closer.

The win was the kind of response Capital needed after a rough stretch in conference play. The Bruins entered the game at 2-4 overall and 2-3 in the AA Western and had already taken losses to Glacier and Flathead on April 11. The victory over Butte gave Helena a much-needed reset before the schedule tightened again, with another conference loss to Big Sky coming April 15 and more league games still ahead.

Capital’s offense was spread across the lineup rather than carried by one hitter. Allie Allen, Ali Miller, Gretta Canney and Izzy Leventes were each credited with RBIs, a mix of production that helped the Bruins build separation in the middle innings. That kind of balance can matter in a spring season where a single inning can shift confidence as much as it changes the standings.

The result also keeps Capital in the conversation as the postseason picture begins to take shape. Montana high school fast-pitch softball has been sanctioned since 1986, and the 2026 Class AA state tournament is set for May 28-30 at Fort Missoula Regional Park in Missoula. With that date approaching quickly, every Western AA result carries extra weight.

Capital’s upcoming stretch includes games against Skyview, Billings Senior, Russell, Great Falls, Belgrade, Sentinel, Hellgate, Flathead, Glacier and Butte later in the season. For a Bruins team trying to steady itself, Tuesday’s win in Butte offered a timely sign that the offense can still deliver when the game starts to tighten.