The 2004 Kimball Area High School fast-pitch softball season opened last week with three games. The Cubs opened practice March 15 with 35 girls in grades 9-12. There are eight seniors, three juniors, 11 sophomores and 13 freshman on the JV and Varsity teams. Varsity is coached by Gary Riess, who is in his 27th season. Beginning her third season as JV coach is Janelle Vogel. Rockets blast off, 5-3 The Cubs opened Tuesday, April 13, against defending CMC conference champion Rockford. Rockford is a favorite again this year, along with Howard Lake- Waverly-Winsted and Maple Lake, to contend for the conference title. The Cubs had to replace six starters from last year’s sub-section runner-up squad. Rockford’s Karlee Simonson was her dominating self on the mound with 12 strikeouts and two walks. However, the Cubs made her battle for the 5-3 win by collecting seven hits and sticking with the Rockets until the final inning. Rockford took a 2-0 lead until the fourth inning, when Cubs’ senior Casey Williams tied the game with a triple, senior Angie Garding walked, and sophomore Jami Weigelt earned a two RBI single. Weigelt also pitched the complete game with two SO’s, two BB’s, and two earned runs allowed. Rockford took the lead for good with two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth. The Cubs only managed one more run, with junior Jodine Lemke earning a RBI single from junior Amelia Hentges in the fifth. The Cubs had a total of seven hits: two each by Williams, Hentges and Weigelt, and one from Lemke. Four Cub errors led to three unearned runs, which was enough to give Rockford the game. Cubs have a close victory, 9-8 Thursday took the Cubs to Maple Lake, where four errors contributed to six unearned and eight total runs. Cubs’ sophomore Whitney Gettler pitched the first four innings and Weigelt finished the game with the final three. The Cubs overcame their defensive lapses and banged out 10 hits to score nine runs in a thrilling 9-8 victory. Kimball came back from three runs down when Gettler and senior Jenna Stenger scored. Maple Lake brought the score to 5-2, when the Cubs scored four times in the fourth inning. Lemke, Weigelt, Gettler and Jen Schefers scored, with doubles from Lemke and junior Jessica Gully, and a RBI single from Hentges. The Cubs added two more in the fifth, with Stenger and Schefers scoring on a double by Lemke. Maple Lake tied the game, 8-8, in the bottom of the fifth. Kimball scored the winning run in the sixth when Angie Garding singled home pinch-runner Andrea Miller for a 9-8 lead. Two big defensive plays held the lead for Kimball. In the bottom of the sixth, senior Michelle Condon made a running catch in the right-centerfield gap to end the inning. Maple Lake put two runners on base in the seventh, but a potential winning hit was stopped by Schefers, who made a diving catch in left field for the final out. Jami Weigelt earned the win, in relief of starter Whitney Gettler. Lemke, Gully and Gettler had two hits apiece for the Cubs. Cubs face reality with 5-0 loss After the emotional high of Thursday, the Cubs got a lesson in reality Friday by traveling to Winsted Holy Trinity. The Wildcats came out hot and struck for five runs in the first inning, with four hits, three walks and an error. The Cubs settled down on the mound and in the field to shut the Wildcats out on three hits for the rest of the game. Unfortunately the Winsted pitcher was inspired by the early lead, and the Cubs managed only one base hit by Jessica Gully, and one run-by-error from Jodine Lemke, for the entire game. Jami Weigelt and Whitney Gettler shared the mound duties for Kimball, but the game ended in a 5-0 loss for Kimball. Three games into the season, the Cubs now hit the heavy part of the schedule with five games in each of the next two weeks. The Cubs have shown they can play with the best in the conference, but need to develop consistency and avoid mental lapses to be ready to play every inning. The Cubs’ first home games are Tuesday, April 20, and Thursday, April 22 against BBE and HLW-W. A tournament in Paynesville Saturday, April 24 completes the week’s schedule.
