Kimball fastpitch softball season commences

By Gary Riess, coach

The 2012 softball season began the regular season last week with poor weather being the operative word. Of the eight games to be played, three were rained out, four were played in cold windy conditions, and one game in perfect weather. This contrasts with the previous three weeks of practice, normally in the gym, which were conducted outdoors in great conditions. The Cubs spent only two days in the gym before commencing outdoor practices, a rarity in Minnesota for this time of year. The Cubs opened the season Friday, April 13, at ACGC, and played only one inning before rain brought the game to a halt. The completely drenched team then had a long wet bus ride back to Kimball.

Monday, April 16, the Cubs opened the CMC at Rockford. All other athletic events were cancelled for that day because of the 38-degree weather, but the Kimball girls are tough and they played. The bats however never got warmed up, and the Cubs fell to Rockford. The Rockets scored four runs in the first against sophomore pitcher Alexis Rose. She then settled down and pitched a complete game, allowing only two more runs. The Cubs offense never got untracked, and only Alyssa Hurrle and Tiffany Berscheid got hits.

Tuesday, April 17, brought a doubleheader against EV-W and the Cubs went down twice in close games by 2-1 and 6-5 scores. The first game was a classic pitchers’ duel with the EV-W piticher throwing 41 pitches and Kimball senior Megan Libbesmeier tossing 43. The game was over in

55 minutes, as neither pitcher issued a walk. EV-W scored once in the second, and one more in the fifth. Kimball’s Katelyn Lichte scored in seventh on an RBI from Brooke Merten. Kimball left five runners on base in the game.

The second game produced a few more hits but the result was the same. The Cubs fell behind 3-0, but Breane Meierhofer and Lexi Rose scored in the fourth to bring the score to 3-2. In the sixth, the Eagles added two more on a homerun and triple to take a

5-2 lead. In the Cubs half of the sixth, Tiffany Berscheid (who was 3-4 in the game), Megan Libbesmeier, and Kaylee Petty scored to tie the game. Steph Konz had a two-RBI single in the inning. EV-W then went ahead in the seventh, scoring a run with a sacrifice fly. In the bottom of the seventh, Kimball couldn’t answer and the game ended 6-5 for EV-W. The Cubs left

9 runners on base, as they suffered from 7 strikeouts.

Thursday, the Cubs faced CMC favorite and five-time conference champ Maple Lake. Again strikeouts hampered the offense with eight K’s and the Cubs could only manage one run. The Cubs defense, which had been outstanding in the first four games, suffered with six errors, leading to five unearned runs. Kimball pitching was rocked for 15 hits and the Irish won the game 9-1. Kimball’s only score was by Breane Meierhofer. Tiffany Berscheid led the offense with two hits, both doubles.

Saturday’s Kimball Tourney with Lester Prairie and PACT Charter was postponed by rain. Makeup dates are yet to be determined. Monday finally brought beautiful softball weather as the Cubs faced HL-W-W. The Cubs have now faced the top four teams in the CMC in their first five conference games. The Cubs fell behind 3-1 after three innings. The Lakers got three runs in the third, and the Cubs Alyssa Hurrle scored in the bottom of the inning. In the fifth Katelyn Lichte hit her first varsity home run to cut the margin to 3-2. The sixth inning proved to be the decisive one with the Lakers using three hits, two walks, and three Kimball errors to score four runs. The final was 7-2 for HL-W-W. The Cubs suffered again from strikeouts with a season high 14.

At this point, the Cubs offense is connecting at only a.157 average. Tiffany Berscheid led with a.500 average, but the next highest is.214. Kimball pitchers have a 4.45 ERA and have allowed opponents a.315 batting average. The highlight for the Cubs is a team-fielding percentage of.906 with 15 errors, 11 of which came in two games.

This year’s squad consists of seniors Tiffany Berscheid, Shelby Seth, Brooke Merten, Megan Libbesmeier, Alyssa Hurrle, Olivia Fischer, and Steph Konz. Juniors are Raelynn Callander, Kelsey Libbesmeier, Breane Meierhofer, Kaylle Petty, and Katelyn Lichte. Sophomore Lexi Rose rounds out the team. Coaches are Gary Riess, and new to the staff this season is assistant coach Judy Callander. Cora Gohmann, Nicole Orth, and Megan Jones are statisticians.