POST 147 LEGION SOFTBALL - Post 147 gets first win, title round gets postponed


Medford’s American Legion Post 147 Senior softball team took the first step toward advancing to Wisconsin’s Division 1 state tournament by earning a well-played 4-1 win over Marshfield Tuesday, which was day one of the three-team Medford regional.
Rylee Hraby struck out seven batters, walked only one and allowed one run on six hits, while Addison Brahmer and Zayleah Leonhardt had two hits apiece in the victory over the Post 54 Blue Angels. Post 147 broke a 1-1 tie in the fifth and tacked on two big insurance runs in the sixth to move within a victory of the regional title.
The championship round in the doubleelimination tournament was set to take place Wednesday at Jaycee Field, but it was postponed by rain to a time to be determined just before Wednesday’s deadline for The Star News. Marshfield again was Medford’s opponent. By the luck of the draw, the Blue Angels had to play three games on Tuesday.
They beat Merrill twice, 14-3 and 13-3, to eliminate Post 46.
Marshfield then needed to beat Medford twice in the championship if it was going to stop Post 147 from advancing.
The top two teams advance to state from each of the four Division 1 regionals. However, this regional is different because Merrill is the state host and gets an automatic berth, meaning the second state berth was going to come down to Medford or Marshfield no matter what.
Playing as the visitors Tuesday, Medford squandered scoring opportunities in the top of the first two innings, stranding two runners in each frame. But Post 147 broke through in the third against Marshfield pitcher Molly Fox. Rylee Hraby singled with one out, Leonhardt walked and Laney Hraby bounced an RBI single up the middle to drive in her sister. The Raiders left two more runners stranded in that inning.
The Blue Angels tied it in the bottom half with singles from Madi Cole and Lily Griesbach and a run-scoring groundout from Shelby Spata.
After Medford left two more runners on base in the fourth, the team got the goahead run with more small ball in the fifth. Leonhardt singled, Laney Hraby reached on an error and they were bunted up a base by Tori Nicks. Kailyn Haenel’s grounder scored Leonhardt.
Ruthie Steinman led off the sixth with a single and Brahmer was hit by a pitch. After a Finley Arndt flyout and a wild pitch, Steinman scored on Rylee Hraby’s groundout. Leonhardt then crushed a double that drove in Brahmer.
Marshfield made things interesting in the bottom of the seventh when Delany Varsho reached on Medford’s only error of the game and Ari Pugh singled. But Rylee Hraby struck out the next two hitters and got Rhyan Costa to line out to Nicks in leftfield to end it.
Fox struck out seven, walked four and allowed seven hits and three earned runs. Six Blue Angels had one hit apiece.
The Division 1 and 2 state tournaments are set for Aug. 1-3 in Merrill. In Division 1, Merrill gets an automatic berth by being the host team. By the end of the night on Tuesday, Waupun and Shawano had advanced from the Shawano regional, Wausau and D.C. Everest had advanced from the Wausau regional and Westby and Sparta were the two finalists in the Sparta regional.