Things looking up for Rib Lake with infusion of young talent

RIB LAKE SOFTBALL PREVIEW

The Rib Lake softball team is halfway to matching its win total from a year ago after just one weekend and, despite being quite young, is creating some belief that success is coming for a program that hasn’t seen a lot of it in recent years.

The Redmen went 2-1 at the seasonopening Danny Mac Softball Classic hosted by Rhinelander in the comforts of its Hodag Dome and reached the championship game of their eight-team bracket Saturday and Sunday to get things off to a positive start.

Head coach Craig Scheithauer, starting the second year of his second stint as the program’s head coach, feels he has a squad that is versatile, speedy and has a competitive mentality that can make it a winner.

“I told the girls before the season, we may only have 12 players,” Scheithauer said Monday. “But with the 12 we have, I’m happy. We’re young, but not necessarily inexperienced. And we have speed. Our slowest players are not what you would call slow. They’re just not as fast as the fast players. We have some kids who can really scoot and get down the line. As long as we put the ball in play, we’re going to be tough to get out. That makes problems for defenses. They’ve talked about that because they actually saw it now in real time.”

Rib Lake is coming off a 4-11 season in 2022, matching the four wins the team got the previous year. Other than a seven- win season in 2016, Rib Lake hasn’t come close to double-digit wins since it got 10 in 2012.

While it remains to be seen how 2023 will go, Scheithauer believes this group, which has just one senior and three juniors, will get the Redmen pointed in the right direction.

“We’re young but we’ll be fine,” he said. “We’ll be competitive.”

The team’s upperclassmen include senior Rhonnie Jo Scheithauer and juniors Josie Scheithauer, Leah Chmielowiec and Cassandra Cano, all of whom have already had multiple seasons of varsity experience. Chmielowiec earned honorable mention allconference honors in the Marawood North last spring and remains the team’s centerfielder, Rhonnie Jo Scheithauer and Cano also bring outfield experience and Josie Scheithauer figures to move into the team’s top pitching role and can play several infield positions.

The growth of the sophomores and freshmen will be one of the determining factors in just how far this year’s team can go.

Addison Gumz and Kiana Dallmann are the sophomores who played the most as freshmen and will play big roles again this year with twins Lily and Olivia Butler also back for their second seasons.

The freshman class brings some ready-to-play talent that certainly will make Rib Lake better. Avery Niemi immediately steps in as the team’s top catcher, Tahlia Scheithauer will be a middle infielder and do a lot of pitching and Kara Kennedy and Madilyn Blomberg will figure into the mix one way or another, whether it’s in the outfield, the infield and at the plate.

A fifth freshman, Tessa Weik, would’ve had a major role as well as a pitcher and first baseman, but she is still recovering from a knee injury suffered in the volleyball season and won’t yet be able to play this spring.

“We’re heavier on the youth end but not necessarily inexperienced,” Craig Scheithauer said. “There’s a handful in that freshman group that have played a lot of ball growing up and a lot of competitive ball. They’ve played in tournaments and things. So they’re maybe a little more seasoned than some other incoming classes. Right now, Tahlia and Avery are my number two and three hitters. They’re not overwhelmed by being in those spots.”

Tahlia Scheithauer was the winning pitcher in Rib Lake’s 13-1 win over Mellen Saturday night in Rhinelander. Josie Scheithauer picked up the win in the team’s 6-1 victory over Shiocton on Saturday afternoon and Craig Scheithauer is hoping those two will keep up that good work as the team’s top two hurlers.

“They both located their pitches and executed more than they didn’t execute,” Craig Scheithauer said. “It showed. We worked some change-ups in there and threw them for strikes. If they weren’t strikes they were generally in good locations. Sometimes not and those got hit hard. That’s learning. We were pleased with that.” Dallmann and Gumz can also pitch in a pinch and that may happen at times if the schedule gets backed up later in the year. They both threw two innings in an 11-4 loss to Auburndale in Sunday’s bracket championship game. Normally Gumz will see a lot of time at third base and Dallmann is likely to see both outfield and infield time, depending on that day’s pitching and defensive lineup. “If you’re going to pitch four pitchers, you better be versatile with where other players are playing,” Craig Scheithauer said. “If you change one with 11 players available, then you’re changing two or three. That’s just how it is.” Offensively, Rib Lake might not have an abundance of power hitters, but coach Scheithauer thinks the team’s speed could be a great equalizer –– if the Redmen can consistently make contact and put the ball in play. “Routine grounders aren’t as routine with certain girls running,” he said. “Speed matters. As long as you’re not striking out, you’re giving us a chance to make things happen.”

Rib Lake had 12 hits against Shiocton and 10 against Mellen and took advantage of some errors as well in those wins. In all three games, Scheithauer said the team didn’t see the greatest nor the worst pitching it will face this season, which he felt made for a perfect early-season test.

“We’ll see better, but this was a good start,” he said.

Rib Lake, like just about every other area team is stuck in an early-season waiting game with the weather, which isn’t showing many signs of a dramatic warm-up. Rib Lake’s field is under a lot of snow and won’t be playable anytime soon.

AnoldcollegeconnectionofScheithauer’s helped set up a game for the Redmen Friday in the Twin Cities against Minnehaha Academy and Rib Lake has pounced on a couple of chances to play at the new turf facility in Wisconsin Rapids. They’ll play Spencer there Tuesday at 6 p.m. and have planned an April 10 doubleheader there with Chequamegon to start Marawood North play.

As for the North, Phillips is the defending champion after going 8-0 in league play and 16-3 overall last spring. Athens has always been tough to beat and went 6-2, 14-6 last year. Both teams reached WIAA regional finals. Rib Lake and Chequamegon tied for third at 3-5 and Prentice was winless in league play.

As usual, any crossover games Rib Lake gets in with the Marawood South figure to be tough tests and the Redmen have some good non-conference games scheduled with teams like Butternut-Mercer, who has eliminated Rib Lake from WIAA Division 5 tournament play the last two years, Gilman, Colby-Abbotsford and Columbus Catholic.

Rib Lake’s seventh grade boys basketball team placed third out of 18 Division 4 and 5 teams in the Wisconsin State Invitational Championship Tournament held March 25-26 in La Crosse. The Redmen went 5-1 in the state tourney, losing only to Poynette 41-32 in the semifinals. Rib Lake then dominated Darlington 41-18 in the third-place game, while Mondovi beat Poynette 52-30 in the championship. In pool play, Rib Lake won a thrilling game with La Crosse Aquinas 56-47 and then had no trouble with Cochrane-Fountain City (39-14) and Onalaska Luther (46-12). Rib Lake edged Fall Creek 48-45 in the quarterfinals. Rib Lake went 10-2 in Great Northwest Basketball League play, winning tournaments at home and at Weyauwega-Fremont, taking second at Medford and taking third at Marshfield. Team members include (front l. to r.) Maxwell Miller, Kylan Bartelt, Ty Niemi, (back) coach Mark Mann, Josiah Mann, Dene Zuleger, Lucas Cook, Slade Scheithauer, Grant Beard, Blake Henderson and head coach James Cook.SUBMITTED PHOTO