Montana

Female Area Athlete of the Week: Carsten hitting and pitching for Wolverines

Published

2 years ago

April 20, 2024

Female Area Athlete of the Week: Carsten hitting and pitching for Wolverines

WADENA — There is not much Montana Carsten can’t do on the softball field.

The Wadena-Deer Creek junior captain has been dynamite in the pitching circle and at the plate through the first seven games for the Wolverines.

Last week, Carsten recorded three wins in the circle for the Wolverines. She scored nine runs and drove in five runs in six games — all WDC wins.

“When we started practices this year, we kind of saw this new Montana that was ready to go the entire time,” WDC head coach Brooke Umland said. “She was named one of the team captains and she’s really taken on that role for us. She has a seriousness about her and she’s constantly lifting up her teammates. We expected big things from her and she hasn’t disappointed.”

Carsten earned the win in the circle in WDC’s 3-2 victory over Menahga to start the week Tuesday, April 9.

In two games Thursday, April 11, Carsten recorded five hits, scored six runs and drove in two runs as the Wolverines beat Pine River-Backus 14-1 and Staples-Motley 11-1.

“When I get in the box, I just try to hit the ball,” Carsten said. “I try my best to swing at strikes and just get on base as much as I can and score.”

Carsten earned the win in the circle against PRB. In a doubleheader sweep of the Pillager Huskies Friday, April 12, Carsten allowed two hits in a complete-game Game One shutout. Carsten also went 3-for-4 with a double and three runs scored for the Wolverines in a 12-0 win.

Carsten finished the week by allowing one earned run in a 10-6 win against Parkers Prairie Monday, April 15.

“I was just throwing strikes and just trying to be consistent,” Carsten said. “I know my defense will make plays behind me.”

Carsten holds a 1.03 ERA in the circle and a .637 batting average at the plate.

“Her confidence, whether it’s in the circle or in the box, she expects to do well,” Umland said. “She goes up there and she’s producing for us in all aspects of her game.”

Carsten slots in as the No. 2 hitter in W-DC’s batting order.

“She’s one of our leaders in RBIs because our leadoff hitter is doing a great job of getting on ahead of Montana,” Umland said. “She is doing a great job at the No. 2 spot.”

Hitting at the top of the lineup helps Carsten with her confidence.

“I know there are some big hitters behind me that I know can drive me and my teammates in,” Carsten said.

In the circle, Umland is impressed most by Carsten’s control. In five games, Carsten has walked two batters.

“Even when she is down in the count she can come back and strikout out a batter,” Umland said. “When she’s throwing well, she is pretty much unstoppable with the defense behind her. She trusts them and they trust her.”

Carsten added she tries to aim for the catcher’s glove when pitching — nothing fancy.

“I’ll start with a couple of fastballs and then try to throw either a drop ball or change-up,” Carsten said. “The fastball is probably my best pitch. I feel like I’ve improved on being really consistent and not walking many girls. I just try to get them to hit, so we can get the outs.”

Having Carsten in the circle gives Umland all the confidence in the world as a coach, too.

“When someone commands the strike zone like she is right now you have to go with her,” Umland said. “When you have someone throwing like that our confidence gains more and more every game. She is definitely a tone-setter for us.”

Other notable performances:
Softball: Keira Bertram, Bertha-Hewitt/Verndale, went 6-9 with two doubles.
Kendra Melby, Pierz, 6-8 with three doubles and seven RBIs in two games last week.
Abby Palm, Aitkin, went 6-7 with five RBIs.
Jada Dykhoff, Wadena-Deer Creek, blasted a grand slam against Pillager.
Golf: Genevieve Birkeland, Pequot Lakes, was the medalist for the Granite Ridge Conference meet at Stone Creek Golf Course.

Year: Junior
School: Wadena-Deer Creek
Sport: Softball
Position: Pitcher
Highlights: Montana Carsten recorded eight hits, nine runs and five RBIs across six games. She picked up four wins in the circle.

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Montana

Montana Lottery Powerball, Lotto America results for March 2, 2026

Published

9 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 2, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from March 2 drawing

02-17-18-38-62, Powerball: 20, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lotto America numbers from March 2 drawing

03-08-17-24-34, Star Ball: 06, ASB: 02

Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from March 2 drawing

06-12-19-29, Bonus: 11

Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from March 2 drawing

21-28-58-65-67, Powerball: 25

Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 2 drawing

28-41-42-50-55, Bonus: 02

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.

Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Montana

Apparent AI Glitch in Filing by Montana Public Defender, Recent Congressional Candidate

Published

21 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Apparent AI Glitch in Filing by Montana Public Defender, Recent Congressional Candidate

Everyone makes mistakes, even experienced professionals; a good reminder for the rest of us to learn from those mistakes. The motion in State v. Stroup starts off well in its initial pages (no case law hallucinations), but is then followed by several pages of two other motions, which I don’t think the lawyer was planning to file, and which appear to have been AI-generated: It begins with the “Below is concise motion language you can drop into …” language quoted above.

Griffen Smith (Missoulian) reported on the story, and included the prosecutor’s motion to strike that filing, on the grounds that it violates a local rule (3(G)) requiring disclosure of the use of generative AI:

The document does not include a generative artificial intelligence disclosure as required. However, page 7 begins as follows: “Below is concise motion language you can drop into a ‘Motion to Admit Mental-Disease Evidence and for Related Instructions’ keyed to 45-6-204, 45-6-201, and 4614-102. Adjust headings/captions to your local practice.” Page 10 states “Below is a full motion you can paste into your pleading, then adjust names, dates, and styles to fit local practice.” These pages also include several apparent hyperlinks to “ppl-ai-file-upload.s3.amazonaws,” “ppl-ai-fileupload.s3.amazonaws+1,” and others. The document includes what appears to be an attempt at a second case caption on page 12. It is not plausible on its face that any source other than generative AI would have created such language for a filed version of a brief….

There’s more in that filing, but here’s one passage:

While generative AI can be a useful tool for some purposes and may have greater application in the future, when used improperly, and without meaningful review, it can ultimately damage both the perception and the reality of the profession. One assumes that Mr. Stroup has had, or will at some point have, an opportunity to review the filing made on his behalf. What impression could a review of pgs. 12-19 leave upon a defendant who struggles with paranoia and delusional thinking? While AI could theoretically one day become a replacement for portions of staff of experienced attorneys, it is readily apparent that this day has not yet arrived.

The Missoulan article includes this response:

In a Wednesday interview, Office of Public Defender Division Administrator Brian Smith told the Missoulian the AI-generated language was inadvertently included in an unrelated filing. And he criticized the county attorney’s office for filing a “four-page diatribe about the dangers of AI” instead of working with the defense to correct her mistake.
“That’s not helping the client or the case,” Smith said, “and all you are doing is trying to throw a professional colleague under the bus.”

As I mentioned, the lawyer involved seems quite experienced, and ran for the Montana Public Service Commission in 2020 (getting nearly 48% of the vote) and for the House of Representatives in Montana’s first district in 2022 (getting over 46% of the vote) and in 2024 (getting over 44%). “Его пример другим наука,” Pushkin wrote in Eugene Onegin—”May his example profit others,” in the Falen translation.

Thanks to Matthew Monforton for the pointer.

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