RIB LAKE SOFTBALL - Rib Lake’s offense can’t be stopped in 18-9 win in regular-season finale
RIB LAKE SOFTBALL
The Rib Lake softball team got back over the .500 mark Thursday while finishing the regular season with offensive barrage at Loyal-Greenwood.
The Redmen won 18-9 with a five-run first inning and a six-run third providing most of the production. Five players had three hits apiece as Rib Lake piled up 18 hits and the team drew 13 walks to have nearly constant pressure on the base paths.
Rib Lake finished the regular season at 11-10.
Loyal-Greenwood kept pace early, answering Rib Lake’s five-run first inning with four in the bottom half. The lead for Rib Lake was 7-5 after two innings. The six-run third, however, put the home team in a hole it would not get out of it.
Six singles powered the five-run first with hits by Kiana Dallmann and Madilyn Blomberg driving in one run apiece and Lily Butler’s hit knocking in the last two. Kara Kennedy added a double but two runners were left stranded.
A two-run double by Karsyn Penk highlighted Loyal-Greenwood’s four-run rally in the bottom half. Dallmann’s two-run single put Rib Lake up 7-4 in the second. The big third inning started with a single from leadoff hitter Addison Gumz. She stole second and went to third on Leah Chmielowiec’s groundout. Avery Niemi walked then Tessa Weik singled in Gumz. Josie Scheithauer lined out for the second out of the inning, but Rib Lake went to work after that. Dallmann walked, Blomberg was hit by a pitch and Butler, Kennedy, Gumz and Chmielowiec all walked in runs. Rib Lake made it 16-5 in the top of the fifth and gave itself a chance to end the game early. Niemi, Scheithauer and Blomberg drove in runs with base hits in that rally. Loyal-Greenwood killed the hopes of an early finish by scoring four runs in the bottom of the fifth behind three hits and two errors. Still comfortably ahead at 16-9, Rib Lake scored the last two runs in the sixth with Niemi singling in Gumz, who led off the inning on a bunt single and Scheithauer added a sacrifice fly.
Dallmann and Blomberg both went three for four with three runs batted in apiece. They also both scored twice. Niemi and Gumz both went three for five. Gumz scored four runs and drove in one. Weik was three for four with four runs scored and two driven in.
Scheithauer got the win in the pitching circle. She worked the first four innings, struck out four, did not walk a batter and allowed seven hits and five earned runs. Dallmann covered the last three innings. She struck out two, walked two and allowed four hits and four runs, two of which were earned.
The teams played a second game featuring varsity reserves and JV players. Rib Lake won that 23-17. Megan Buksa and Madelyn Dallmann had three hits apiece.
Rib Lake’s WIAA Division 5 regional semifinal game at fourth-seeded Prairie Farm Tuesday was postponed due to the potential for severe weather. It was to be played Wednesday. The winner will play today, Thursday, against the winner of the game between eighth-seeded Elmwood-Plum City and one-seed Athens, which was also postponed to Wednesday.
The regional champion will play in a sectional semifinal Tuesday. The sectional final is set to be played at Athens at 5 p.m. on May 30.
