Baseball falls to Mosinee
If there is one thing that defined the 2021 Abbotsford/Colby baseball co-op, it was a willingness to work hard, to leave everything on the field, and to let opponents know the co-op was very good.
Mission accomplished.
“I think we put a little respect on our names and the program,” Abby senior Cade Faber said after the co-op’s 8-0 regional quarterfinal loss to Mosinee.
Hard to argue with that, especially after the co-op finished the season with a 16-10 record, and won a share of the Marawood - North title.
The last time Abby had a winning record was 2008 (8-5), and Colby was 2011 (13-9). While the loss to Mosinee stings, head coach Ryan Bargender had nothing but praise for his players afterwards.
“Of course you always want to win your last game, and it is easy to say if we had done this or that better we would have been more successful,” Bargender said. “This season was a big step in the right direction for the program.”
The program still has plenty of work to do, and that will start with playing cleaner baseball after several errors paved the way for Mosinee’s fast start.
After three innings the co-op was in a 5-0 deficit after the Indians scored once in the first and twice more in the second and third.
Abby/Colby struck the ball well, finishing with seven hits, but Mosinee’s pitching and defense continued to shut out the co-op. Mosinee’s Matthew Dudei was extremely effective on the mound, picking up the win as he sent 12 Abby/ Colby batter’s back to the dug-out.
Abby/Colby had runners in scoring position, but simply could not bring them home. Mosinee padded their lead with several hits that found the gaps in the coop’s defense, and added three more runs at the bottom of the sixth to all but put the game away.
Brandon Diedrich and Mateo Lopez both recorded two hits, and Nick Olvera batted a double. Hunter Soyk and JV Castillo picked up one hit apiece.
After the game, Bargender and his coaching staff praised the players for their fine season, and thanked this year’s seniors for their leadership.
“We will have some big shoes to fill next year,” Bargender said, “We graduate seven seniors that were talented ball players and good leaders.”
However, multiple playmakers will return in 2022, and Bargender expects a season like 2021 to be the norm, and not the exception.
“This season was a big step in the right direction for the program. Our goal is to be able to compete for the conference title year in and year out.”
