One month after overcoming what seemed like a never-ending weather cycle fraught with all kinds of surprises, the Bingham Miners softball team settled into a nice groove and won a share of the Region 3 title with Riverton. 

It was Bingham’s first region title, outright or shared, since the 2018-19 school year. 

For Bingham [8-2 Region 3, 18-5] a 4-0 start in region play led to two showdowns with an old familiar foe in Riverton in the span of one week. 

In two classics that will likely see a third come state tournament time, the Miners came up with two fewer runs than did Riverton in two narrow 6-4 losses for Bingham. 

In their first showdown April 20 at Bingham, the Miners jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the third inning when senior Shelbee Jones nuked a three-run home run. That seemed to hold up until Riverton lasered a grand slam in the bottom of the seventh off Jones, who struck out eight in a 6-4 loss. 

In their second rivalry battle at Riverton April 26, Jones scored the only run off an Oakley Clark single, but that was it as the Miners fell victim to the Silverwolves again in a 3-1 loss.

For Bingham those two losses to Riverton were the only setbacks in Region 3 play. 

The SLCC signee Jones has now hit 11 home runs and 30 RBI through 23 games this season. On the mound, she has a 13-2 record and 2.17 ERA as the Miners’ ace. Senior Braxtyn Hunter, also an SLCC signee, has hit 12 RBI and is tied for the lead in doubles [5] with Jones. 

Backing up Jones on the mound is sophomore Brecka Larson, who has appeared in 13 games for Bingham, allowing just 1.22 runs per game. 

Senior Charity Drake is back from injury and leads the team in hits [30] while junior Oakley Clark has smacked 18 RBI for Bingham. Sophomore Shyann Banasky is tops in slugging percentage [.700] while sophomore Brooklyn Fogg is tied for the lead in stolen bases [14] with the senior Jones. 

Bingham’s only other losses to date have come to Ridgeline and Spanish Fork in early March, and to perennial power Bear River in the middle of a back-to-back in region play, May 3.

The Miners will carry a No. 4 seed and first-round bye into the 6A state tournament, slated to begin after press time. 

Girls Track 

Picking right up where she left off last year is Bingham senior Natalie Swain. She dusted by the competition at the Region 3 track championships, winning medals in the 800, the 1,600 and the 3,200 meters at Mountain Ridge High School May 9. 

Swain wasn’t the only Miner to have won a medal, either; the 4x200 relay team from Bingham also won a region title—Laila Stoker did so as well in shot put. 

As a team, the Miners finished in second place overall at the Region 3 Championships with 154.5 points. Next up for these Miners was the 6A state track and field championships at BYU after press deadline. λ