BILLINGS — Billings Scarlets left-hander Paxton Prill has developed into one of the best American Legion baseball pitchers in the state.

An all-conference selection last year, Prill amassed a 13-0 record during which he threw 85 1/3 innings, struck out 110 batters and only walked 25 batters. He recorded a 1.23 earned-run average.

In his most recent outing, Prill threw the complete seven innings in a 1-0 victory over the Great Falls Chargers at Pirtz Field. He only allowed two hits vs. the Chargers (28-20-1) and walked one batter while fanning 13, per the box score on the Scarlets’ GameChanger stats. The Scarlets are 6-0 in league contests and lead the Montana-Alberta Class AA standings.

“It was obviously a conference game, and we want to win those games,” said Prill, who will be a junior at Central in the fall, of the contest against the Chargers. “It was great, a nail biter. It went all the way to the seventh, 0-0, and the Great falls pitcher (Kayden Neil) threw a great game, too.

“It was 0-0 until the seventh and then we were able to have Cody Collis walk it off. So, that was pretty cool. Yeah, I did my part, but I also had great defense behind me and also our bats came through in the end.”

While Prill was obviously happy with the way he pitched, he was just as thrilled with his teammates’ performance and the way Collis delivered the game-winning single with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh of a 0-0 game.

“Clutch Cody Collis. Triple C,” said Prill with a big grin.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Prill is a third-year Scarlet. As an eighth-grader, Prill played half a season with the Class A Billings Cardinals before being promoted to the Scarlets.

Prill, who also plays basketball at Central, said he has four pitches in his arsenal — a fastball, curveball, slider, and a changeup. He is confident in his teammates, saying, “I know the defense will make plays behind me.”

“My pitching is just really turned on,” said Prill. “High school was a good warm up for me. So, coming off of high school, I’m able to build off that and I have great defense. I mean, these guys (motioning to his teammates) put in a full effort every game.”

A goal for Prill would be to pitch at the college level. 

“My dream school is Notre Dame, it’s where my whole family went,” said Prill. “That’s where I want to go. I’m going to a couple camps this summer. That’s my dream school. My dad, my mom, went there, my grandparents, my whole family; so that’s where I want to go, but we’ll see what happens.”

Hust said Prill has developed into the ace of the Scarlets’ pitching staff. Fans aren’t likely to see him pitch at the Goldsmith as the team’s rotation is set up for conference with his next turn coming at Helena after the four-day tourney concludes. Hust said that Prill also plays first base and outfield for the Scarlets.

“He just progressively keeps getting better and better,” said Hust. “He’s getting bigger and stronger. He puts a lot of work in and is just doing great. I can’t wait to see what happens in his future.”

“He is a super-talented hard worker and he’s a good person, good kid. He’s definitely a lot of fun to be around. And you know when he gets on the mound, you know you have a shot to win every time he toes the rubber. He’s coming along nicely, and I think the sky is going to be the limit for him as long as he keeps working hard, staying healthy, and doing things the right way. It’s going to be fun to see what the next two or three years have in store for him.”