The 2013 Park Falls Girls' Softball Club's 16-U Diamond Dusters won the consolation championship in the Chippewa Valley Flash Classic in Chippewa Falls Team members included: front row from left, Abby Lee, Emily Mader and Michelle Lobermeier; and back row from left, Emily Ernest, Makayla Casey, Megan Mader, Emily Johnson, Sophie Schmidt, Morgan Hilgart and Danielle Masterson. Also playing with the Dusters this summer were Brooke Spacek and Cheyenne Czerwinski.
Diamond Dusters win consolation title at Flash Classic
Rallying in its final three games, the Park Falls Girls’ Softball Club’s Diamond Dusters’ 16-U team won the consolation
title at the Chippewa Valley Flash Classic this past weekend.
The Dusters opened with a 9-1 loss to the Chippewa Valley Flash and finished pool play with a 7-2 victory over the
Wolves from the Twin Cities (MN). The Dusters tallied three times in the fifth inning to overcome a 2-0
deficit against the Marathon County Magic before the game went to the international tie-breaker, where the Magic notched a 4-3 victory to send the Dusters to the consolation bracket.
Facing the Wolves again, the Dusters fell behind 4-0 after half an inning, but battled back to notch a 9-6 victory.
Playing for the consolation championship, the Dusters saw a 2-0 lead evaporate as Superior put up a five-spot in its half of the first. After pulling even at 5-5, the Dusters erupted for seven runs after two were out in the fifth inning
en route to a 15-7 victory.
“It was a great way to finish the summer. We got washed out the first tournament and never really had most of
our pieces together until this weekend. We started slowly at the plate in Chippewa Falls, but things heated up and we played some pretty good softball against some pretty good competition,” Dusters’ Coach Ken Dischler said. “We
matched up pretty well against quality teams in the three tournaments we did get to play and our players got better, stronger, and hopefully more confident. Everyone had some good moments this weekend.”
The Flash put four runs on the board in the second inning to build a 5-0 lead and added two in the fifth and two in
the sixth. Michelle Lobermeier singled and scored on a fielder’s choice for the Dusters’ lone tally. Morgan Hilgart and Emily Mader also singled for the Dusters.
The Dusters got the bats going against the Wolves. Lobermeier led off the bottom of the first with a walk and scored on
Danielle Masterson’s double. Sophie Schmidt followed with an RBI triple. Megan Mader drew a one-out walk in the second, Abby Lee followed with a single, and Emily Mader sent her sister home with an infield ground out.
In the third, Emily Ernest walked ahead of Masterson’s RBI triple. Schmidt sent Masterson home with a double. The
Dusters tallied their final two runs in the fifth. Lobermeier singled and Emily Ernest walked. Masterson beat out a bunt for her third hit of the game, and Schmidt ripped a two-run single for her third hit, finishing with four RBI.
“Nellie (Masterson) and Sophie jump-started our offense with a couple deep shots and our top three in the order
(Lobermeier, Ernest and Maserson) scored two runs each. We staked Emily Johnson to a lead and she threw a real nice game for the win,” Dischler said.
Johnson scattered five hits, walked two, and fanned five, allowing solo runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
Against the Magic, who went on to win the tournament, the Dusters scored three in the top of the fifth. Schmidt
reached on an error and Johnson followed with a double. After Schmidt scored on a passed ball, Makayla Casey walked and Hilgart followed with an RBI single. Hilgart later scored on an error.
The Magic scored an unearned run in the fifth to tie the game and won it with a run in the sixth.
“It was a tough loss, but we picked up a little steam. They had the bases loaded with no outs in the third before a
storm delay, and when we got back on the field, Megan (Mader) got a fly ball and the two punchouts to get us out of it with just one run scoring,” Dischler said. “Then we took the lead and put ourselves in position to win.”
The Wolves capitalized on some walks and a fielding miscue to go ahead 5-0 in the top of the first in the consolation
semifinal, but the Dusters came right back with three in their half of the inning. Schmidt had a two-run double in the inning. Lee reached on an error to open the second and Emily Mader was hit by a pitch. Both scored on a single by
Ernest, who later came around to score. The Dusters scored three runs after two were out in the fourth with Masterson rapping a two-run double.
“Coming right back in the first inning was huge,” Dischler said. “After a rough start, GiGi (Johnson) found her groove
and shut them down until a we gave them a couple runs in the sixth on errors.”
Johnson allowed just two hits and fanned seven.
Ernest and Masterson scored to put the Dusters up early in the consolation title game, but Superior rapped five of its
seven hits to tally five times in the bottom of the frame. Ernest threw out a batter from right field to finally snuff the uprising.
Hilgart walked and scored on Emily Mader’s two-out single in the second, and the Dusters knotted the score in the
fourth with Megan Mader walking and scoring on Emily Mader’s single, and the latter scoring on a base knock by Lobermeier. Lee’s two-run single opened the floodgates in the seven-run fifth, which included a bases-loaded walk to
Lobermeier and some costly errors by Superior.
Superior made it 12-7 with two runs in the bottom of the fifth. The Dusters answered with three in the sixth with
Hilgart and Lee singling ahead of a hard shot by Lobermeier which was mishandled, and an RBI single by Ernest. Hilgart scored three times in the game and Lobermeier, Ernest, Lee and Emily Mader scored two runs each. Lobermemer, Lee and Emily Mader had two hits and two RBI each.
“The girls stroked the ball well in the final game and we hit up and down the line-up at different times throughout
the weekend. Different girls carried us in different games,” Dischler said. “After being hit hard in the first inning of the final game, Megan hit her spots the rest of the way and was pretty much lights out. She really finished strong
her final two games.”
Lobermeier had a hot bat at the top of the order, going 6-for-13 and scoring eight runs. Schmidt was 6-for-14 with two
doubles, a triple, and six RBI. Lee went 4-for-9 and Emily Mader was 3-for-9.Masterson had two doubles and a triple.
“This was the first weekend we hit the ball from top to bottom in the order,” Dischler said. “Except for an inning here
and there, Megan and GiGi threw really well, and the infield played well,turning a couple of double plays, including a key 3-unassisted DP by Stretch (Lobermeier). Double-E (Ernest) and Pudge (Emily Mader) had a really good
weekend in the outfield and Sophie was a brick wall behind the plate. It was a good summer for the girls and a
great way to finish.”
Rallying in its final three games, the Park Falls Girls’ Softball Club’s Diamond Dusters’ 16-U team won the consolation
title at the Chippewa Valley Flash Classic this past weekend.
The Dusters opened with a 9-1 loss to the Chippewa Valley Flash and finished pool play with a 7-2 victory over the
Wolves from the Twin Cities (MN). The Dusters tallied three times in the fifth inning to overcome a 2-0
deficit against the Marathon County Magic before the game went to the international tie-breaker, where the Magic notched a 4-3 victory to send the Dusters to the consolation bracket.
Facing the Wolves again, the Dusters fell behind 4-0 after half an inning, but battled back to notch a 9-6 victory.
Playing for the consolation championship, the Dusters saw a 2-0 lead evaporate as Superior put up a five-spot in its half of the first. After pulling even at 5-5, the Dusters erupted for seven runs after two were out in the fifth inning
en route to a 15-7 victory.
“It was a great way to finish the summer. We got washed out the first tournament and never really had most of
our pieces together until this weekend. We started slowly at the plate in Chippewa Falls, but things heated up and we played some pretty good softball against some pretty good competition,” Dusters’ Coach Ken Dischler said. “We
matched up pretty well against quality teams in the three tournaments we did get to play and our players got better, stronger, and hopefully more confident. Everyone had some good moments this weekend.”
The Flash put four runs on the board in the second inning to build a 5-0 lead and added two in the fifth and two in
the sixth. Michelle Lobermeier singled and scored on a fielder’s choice for the Dusters’ lone tally. Morgan Hilgart and Emily Mader also singled for the Dusters.
The Dusters got the bats going against the Wolves. Lobermeier led off the bottom of the first with a walk and scored on
Danielle Masterson’s double. Sophie Schmidt followed with an RBI triple. Megan Mader drew a one-out walk in the second, Abby Lee followed with a single, and Emily Mader sent her sister home with an infield ground out.
In the third, Emily Ernest walked ahead of Masterson’s RBI triple. Schmidt sent Masterson home with a double. The
Dusters tallied their final two runs in the fifth. Lobermeier singled and Emily Ernest walked. Masterson beat out a bunt for her third hit of the game, and Schmidt ripped a two-run single for her third hit, finishing with four RBI.
“Nellie (Masterson) and Sophie jump-started our offense with a couple deep shots and our top three in the order
(Lobermeier, Ernest and Maserson) scored two runs each. We staked Emily Johnson to a lead and she threw a real nice game for the win,” Dischler said.
Johnson scattered five hits, walked two, and fanned five, allowing solo runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
Against the Magic, who went on to win the tournament, the Dusters scored three in the top of the fifth. Schmidt
reached on an error and Johnson followed with a double. After Schmidt scored on a passed ball, Makayla Casey walked and Hilgart followed with an RBI single. Hilgart later scored on an error.
The Magic scored an unearned run in the fifth to tie the game and won it with a run in the sixth.
“It was a tough loss, but we picked up a little steam. They had the bases loaded with no outs in the third before a
storm delay, and when we got back on the field, Megan (Mader) got a fly ball and the two punchouts to get us out of it with just one run scoring,” Dischler said. “Then we took the lead and put ourselves in position to win.”
The Wolves capitalized on some walks and a fielding miscue to go ahead 5-0 in the top of the first in the consolation
semifinal, but the Dusters came right back with three in their half of the inning. Schmidt had a two-run double in the inning. Lee reached on an error to open the second and Emily Mader was hit by a pitch. Both scored on a single by
Ernest, who later came around to score. The Dusters scored three runs after two were out in the fourth with Masterson rapping a two-run double.
“Coming right back in the first inning was huge,” Dischler said. “After a rough start, GiGi (Johnson) found her groove
and shut them down until a we gave them a couple runs in the sixth on errors.”
Johnson allowed just two hits and fanned seven.
Ernest and Masterson scored to put the Dusters up early in the consolation title game, but Superior rapped five of its
seven hits to tally five times in the bottom of the frame. Ernest threw out a batter from right field to finally snuff the uprising.
Hilgart walked and scored on Emily Mader’s two-out single in the second, and the Dusters knotted the score in the
fourth with Megan Mader walking and scoring on Emily Mader’s single, and the latter scoring on a base knock by Lobermeier. Lee’s two-run single opened the floodgates in the seven-run fifth, which included a bases-loaded walk to
Lobermeier and some costly errors by Superior.
Superior made it 12-7 with two runs in the bottom of the fifth. The Dusters answered with three in the sixth with
Hilgart and Lee singling ahead of a hard shot by Lobermeier which was mishandled, and an RBI single by Ernest. Hilgart scored three times in the game and Lobermeier, Ernest, Lee and Emily Mader scored two runs each. Lobermemer, Lee and Emily Mader had two hits and two RBI each.
“The girls stroked the ball well in the final game and we hit up and down the line-up at different times throughout
the weekend. Different girls carried us in different games,” Dischler said. “After being hit hard in the first inning of the final game, Megan hit her spots the rest of the way and was pretty much lights out. She really finished strong
her final two games.”
Lobermeier had a hot bat at the top of the order, going 6-for-13 and scoring eight runs. Schmidt was 6-for-14 with two
doubles, a triple, and six RBI. Lee went 4-for-9 and Emily Mader was 3-for-9.Masterson had two doubles and a triple.
“This was the first weekend we hit the ball from top to bottom in the order,” Dischler said. “Except for an inning here
and there, Megan and GiGi threw really well, and the infield played well,turning a couple of double plays, including a key 3-unassisted DP by Stretch (Lobermeier). Double-E (Ernest) and Pudge (Emily Mader) had a really good
weekend in the outfield and Sophie was a brick wall behind the plate. It was a good summer for the girls and a
great way to finish.”
Diamond Dusters 16’s post 2-3 record at Eau Claire
The Park Falls Girls’ Softball Club’s 16-U Diamond Dusters finished 2-3 in the Eau Claire Fury fastpitch softball tournament June 29-30.
The Dusters were washed out at Poynette the prior weekend, and open play today, Thursday, July 11, in the Wisconsin ASA Class B State Tournament in Wausau.
The Dusters opened play at Eau Claire with a 21-0 three-inning victory over Eau Claire Fury Orange, rapping 13 hits to back the combined no-hit pitching of Megan Mader and Emily Johnson. Mader fanned four in two innings, and Johnson struck out two in an inning of work. Emily Ernest rapped two triples and scored three times. Sophie Schmidt tripled, scored three runs, and drove in two. Megan Mader, Abby Lee and Brooke Spacek had two hits each.
The Dusters edged the South Interlake Phillies from Canada 5-4 in their second game, with Johnson scattering six hits, fanning six, and walking one in five innings. Schmidt’s RBI triple keyed a two-run first. Johnson doubled to lead off the fourth and scored on an infield ground out off the bat of Makayla Casey. Ernest tripled to lead off the fifth and scored. Cheyenne Czerwinski singled and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Schmidt.
The Wisconsin Rapids Rage notched a 10-0 victory over the Dusters in the final game of pool play, checking the Dusters on four hits.
The Dusters opened play in the Gold Bracket with an 8-7 loss to Mada Fastpitch of Stevens Point in a see-saw battle. The Dusters scored four times in the first on hits by Schmidt, Johnson, Megan Mader and Casey. Danielle Masterson drove in the first run with an infield ground out, Megan Mader laced a two-out, two-run double, and Casey followed with a two-out RBI single. Mada evened the score entering a two-run third for the Dusters. Czerwinski and Masterson singled in the frame ahead of Casey’s two-out, two-run single. Again, Mada came back to tie the score. Megan Mader singled home a run in the fifth before Mada pulled ahead with two runs in the bottom of the inning and held on in the sixth for the win.
“We hit the ball well,” Dusters’ Coach Ken Dischler said. “Makayla (Casey) was really clutch and Megan and Brooke (Spacek) had two hits each. We just didn’t put them away when we had opportunities to do so. We kept letting them back into the game and eventually it caught up with us.”
The Dusters then faced the unbeaten Minnesota Vets, who pushed across a run in the fifth and three in the sixth for a 4-0 victory.
“Megan (Mader) threw really well with some big plays from her defense. They strung a couple hits in the fifth and a couple in the sixth, and they made two huge defensive plays to keep us off the board,” Dischler said.
Casey and Spacek led the way at the plate for the tournament, each going 5-for-11. Schmidt was 4-for-12 with a triple and Ernest ripped three triples. Megan Mader also had four hits.
“Overall, we played pretty well. We could have really used the games in Poynette. It had been a while since many of our girls had seen competitive pitching, but we hit .298 as a team. Our pitchers threw well and we were pretty solid defensively. We saw some great competition and will see more over the next couple weekends,” Dischler said.
The 12-U Dusters were 1-4 at the Eau Claire Fury tournament and were 9-11 on the season entering play this week. The 12’s will wrap up their season this weekend at the Rod Timm Tournament in Tomahawk.
The Dusters lost 5-1 to LaCrosse Boys & Girls Club and 14-2 to the Seymour Flames before blanking Altoona 12-0. They lost 12-3 in their opening bracket game and 12-6 to Reedsburg in their final game.
The 12’s also went 1-4 in at the New Richmond tournament in early June. In weekday games, the Dusters are 7-3.
“We’re pretty young and pretty green at the 12-U level, but the girls have really come a long way and have a great opportunity this weekend in Tomahawk to finish on a very high note,” Dischler said. “Of the 14 players, five are 10-U eligible, and they’ll only move three up to 14-U next season. They were thrown into the heat of battle and are really learning to play the game at a high level.”
The Dusters 14-U team is 7-13 on the season entering their final two weeks. They were 0-3 in the Diamond Dusters Invitational and 1-3 at the June Bug Classic in Wausau, notching a 3-2 victory over the Athens All-Stars. They are 6-7 in weekday games and will close their season at the Chippewa Valley Flash Tournament July 20 & 21.
“This group is also pretty young. Four of their 13 are 12-U eligible and only two will move up next season. We’re also pretty green here, with only a handful of the girls having played at this level previously. They had some pretty severe early season jitters, but are grasping the game. We need a lot of work on our basic skills, but we’ll get there,” Dischler said.
“Kenzi Dane is throwing a lot of quality innings at both levels (12s & 14s) this summer and the sky is the limit for her. Hope Grubb has really been throwing well of late for the 14’s. Brooklyn Hanson, Josi Orr, Grace Wegner and Kennedy BeBeau are working on pitching at the 12-U level and now know what it will take to be successful in the circle,” Dischler said.
“We’ve seen lots of good things at both of our younger levels – we just see them in flashes and then sometimes they’re gone,” Dischler said. “There’s tons of talent there, and with practice and play, they’ll continue to get better and develop strong teams.”
The Park Falls Girls’ Softball Club’s 16-U Diamond Dusters finished 2-3 in the Eau Claire Fury fastpitch softball tournament June 29-30.
The Dusters were washed out at Poynette the prior weekend, and open play today, Thursday, July 11, in the Wisconsin ASA Class B State Tournament in Wausau.
The Dusters opened play at Eau Claire with a 21-0 three-inning victory over Eau Claire Fury Orange, rapping 13 hits to back the combined no-hit pitching of Megan Mader and Emily Johnson. Mader fanned four in two innings, and Johnson struck out two in an inning of work. Emily Ernest rapped two triples and scored three times. Sophie Schmidt tripled, scored three runs, and drove in two. Megan Mader, Abby Lee and Brooke Spacek had two hits each.
The Dusters edged the South Interlake Phillies from Canada 5-4 in their second game, with Johnson scattering six hits, fanning six, and walking one in five innings. Schmidt’s RBI triple keyed a two-run first. Johnson doubled to lead off the fourth and scored on an infield ground out off the bat of Makayla Casey. Ernest tripled to lead off the fifth and scored. Cheyenne Czerwinski singled and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Schmidt.
The Wisconsin Rapids Rage notched a 10-0 victory over the Dusters in the final game of pool play, checking the Dusters on four hits.
The Dusters opened play in the Gold Bracket with an 8-7 loss to Mada Fastpitch of Stevens Point in a see-saw battle. The Dusters scored four times in the first on hits by Schmidt, Johnson, Megan Mader and Casey. Danielle Masterson drove in the first run with an infield ground out, Megan Mader laced a two-out, two-run double, and Casey followed with a two-out RBI single. Mada evened the score entering a two-run third for the Dusters. Czerwinski and Masterson singled in the frame ahead of Casey’s two-out, two-run single. Again, Mada came back to tie the score. Megan Mader singled home a run in the fifth before Mada pulled ahead with two runs in the bottom of the inning and held on in the sixth for the win.
“We hit the ball well,” Dusters’ Coach Ken Dischler said. “Makayla (Casey) was really clutch and Megan and Brooke (Spacek) had two hits each. We just didn’t put them away when we had opportunities to do so. We kept letting them back into the game and eventually it caught up with us.”
The Dusters then faced the unbeaten Minnesota Vets, who pushed across a run in the fifth and three in the sixth for a 4-0 victory.
“Megan (Mader) threw really well with some big plays from her defense. They strung a couple hits in the fifth and a couple in the sixth, and they made two huge defensive plays to keep us off the board,” Dischler said.
Casey and Spacek led the way at the plate for the tournament, each going 5-for-11. Schmidt was 4-for-12 with a triple and Ernest ripped three triples. Megan Mader also had four hits.
“Overall, we played pretty well. We could have really used the games in Poynette. It had been a while since many of our girls had seen competitive pitching, but we hit .298 as a team. Our pitchers threw well and we were pretty solid defensively. We saw some great competition and will see more over the next couple weekends,” Dischler said.
The 12-U Dusters were 1-4 at the Eau Claire Fury tournament and were 9-11 on the season entering play this week. The 12’s will wrap up their season this weekend at the Rod Timm Tournament in Tomahawk.
The Dusters lost 5-1 to LaCrosse Boys & Girls Club and 14-2 to the Seymour Flames before blanking Altoona 12-0. They lost 12-3 in their opening bracket game and 12-6 to Reedsburg in their final game.
The 12’s also went 1-4 in at the New Richmond tournament in early June. In weekday games, the Dusters are 7-3.
“We’re pretty young and pretty green at the 12-U level, but the girls have really come a long way and have a great opportunity this weekend in Tomahawk to finish on a very high note,” Dischler said. “Of the 14 players, five are 10-U eligible, and they’ll only move three up to 14-U next season. They were thrown into the heat of battle and are really learning to play the game at a high level.”
The Dusters 14-U team is 7-13 on the season entering their final two weeks. They were 0-3 in the Diamond Dusters Invitational and 1-3 at the June Bug Classic in Wausau, notching a 3-2 victory over the Athens All-Stars. They are 6-7 in weekday games and will close their season at the Chippewa Valley Flash Tournament July 20 & 21.
“This group is also pretty young. Four of their 13 are 12-U eligible and only two will move up next season. We’re also pretty green here, with only a handful of the girls having played at this level previously. They had some pretty severe early season jitters, but are grasping the game. We need a lot of work on our basic skills, but we’ll get there,” Dischler said.
“Kenzi Dane is throwing a lot of quality innings at both levels (12s & 14s) this summer and the sky is the limit for her. Hope Grubb has really been throwing well of late for the 14’s. Brooklyn Hanson, Josi Orr, Grace Wegner and Kennedy BeBeau are working on pitching at the 12-U level and now know what it will take to be successful in the circle,” Dischler said.
“We’ve seen lots of good things at both of our younger levels – we just see them in flashes and then sometimes they’re gone,” Dischler said. “There’s tons of talent there, and with practice and play, they’ll continue to get better and develop strong teams.”
Members of the 14U Diamond Dusters for 2013 were: front, Shelby Zillmer; middle row from left, Maggie Nesbit, Remi Orr, Crystal Kendzior, Tess Richard, and Korrie Herbst; back row from left, Kylie Sales, Hope Grubb, Kenzi Dane, Maggie Miller, Kayla Herbst, and Kaitlyn Wiezorik; and not pictured, Abby Wegner.
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