Kimberly survives scare from Gooding to claim another 4A District 4 softball crown
KIMBERLY - Few softball teams have been able to stifle the Bulldogs this season.
High School Softball - Kimberly vs. Gooding
Gooding pitcher Kaylee Silver delivers a pitch on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, during a district tournament game against the Kimberly Bulldogs.
Entering Wednesday, Kimberly held a record of 23-2. One of those losses came against Nampa by one run. The other was an 11-run loss at Gooding in the regular-season finale.
The Bulldogs did their best to prove that was a fluke in a game against the Senators in the 4A District 4 softball tournament on May 1.
An 11-0 victory in five innings put Kimberly one win away from the Bulldogs' fourth-straight district tournament crown.
All the Bulldogs had to do was beat Gooding once over their next two games.
Despite the Senators winning that game on May 1, Kimberly still held three wins out of four games against their conference rival this season with an average margin of more than six runs in those victories.
Gooding was quick to show that its win in the regular-season finale was far from a fluke.
Kaylee Silver shut down the Kimberly bats. The Senators' pitcher allowed just six hits from Bulldog bats in the first of two games on Wednesday. That marked Kimberly's second-fewest hits in one game this season.
Silver also owns the honor of holding Kimberly to its fewest hits in one game. She pitched in the aforementioned 11-0 win over the Bulldogs, when Kimberly totaled just one hit.
On Wednesday, the Gooding defense behind Silver made all the plays it needed to. Silver only had four strikeouts, fewer than her counterpart on Kimberly, Gracie Alleman, who had five strikeouts.
High School Softball - Kimberly vs. Gooding
Gooding's Kodi Garza puts the ball in play on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, at Kimberly High School in the 4A District 4 softball tournament against the Bulldogs.
Silver got enough support from her bats. Five Senators had multi-hit games as Scottlyn Martin led all batters with three hits and three RBI's. All of the nine Senators to register a plate appearance had at least one hit.
By comparison, Kimberly's six hits came from six different Bulldogs. Maci Chiatovich registered the only RBI of the game for Kimberly. That came in the first inning to tie the game.
Gooding scored four runs in the second before capping its day with three runs in the top of the sixth inning. Kimberly never had an answer as the Senators forced a winner-take-all game immediately following the win.
Wednesday's second game was more emblematic of what Kimberly has done to almost every opponent it has faced this season.
Kimberly racked up 13 hits to score eight runs in the first four innings. Gooding failed to match its impressive offensive output from the first game.
That said, the Senators put up nine hits and four runs, with the majority of both coming in the top of the seventh inning. Kimberly's lead was too much to overcome, and the Bulldogs picked up an 8-4 win.
High School Softball - Kimberly vs. Gooding
Kimberly's Joy Hanchey claps at the dugout on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, during a home game against the Gooding Senators.
As a result, Kimberly claimed its fourth-straight 4A District 4 tournament championship and an automatic berth into the 4A state tournament in Filer next week.
Based on its MaxPreps composite rankings, Kimberly figures to be the No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the state tournament. Cole Valley Christian, the team that defeated the Bulldogs in the state tournament championship last season, will occupy the other top seed in the tournament.
Gooding's season is not over, as the runner-up in the 4A District 4 softball tournament earns a spot in a state play-in game. The Senators will face the runner-up from the 4A Mountain Rivers Conference, South Fremont.
South Fremont and Gooding have not played one another this season, and the Cougars split their two games against Sawtooth Central Idaho Conference foes. That included a run-rule loss to Kimberly and a two-run win over Buhl, two teams Gooding has handled this season.
Should Gooding win that game on Saturday, the Senators would advance to the 4A state softball tournament for the fourth season in a row, just like Kimberly. In that span, Gooding's best finish is third place.
Saturday's game between the Senators and Cougars starts at 1 p.m. at Blackfoot High School.
High School Softball - Kimberly vs. Gooding | Photos
The Kimberly Bulldogs came back from a defeat against the Gooding Senators to win the 4A District 4 softball tournament. Kimberly advances to the state tournament, and Gooding has the chance to join them via a play-in game on Saturday.
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