PALISADE—The Palisade Bulldogs clinched the Western Slope League title and an automatic birth in the state softball tournament by defeating the Rifle Bears 11 to 0 in a five inning, mercy-ruled game. Palisade starting pitcher Mikayla Talbott was dominant striking out 7 while limiting Rifle to just 4 hits. The Bears didn’t give themselves much of a chance in the game by committing 7 errors. The loss snaps the Bears’ four game winning streak and drops them to 1 and 2 in league play, 8 and 4 overall. Rifle will return home this Saturday afternoon for a non-league game against the Sabercats of Castle View High School. The game is set for 1:30 and will be broadcast live on KMTS.
