Unbeaten Raiders tip T-Birds 2-1, do enough to get by Hatchets

MEDFORD SOFTBALL

The bats went fairly quiet for the Medford Raiders late last week, save for one big inning, but the pitching and defense remained steady in two victories that kept Wisconsin’s top-ranked Division 2 softball team undefeated and atop the Great Northern Conference as the regular season already hits its home stretch.

Alert base running also was a key factor that got Medford past Lakeland 2-1 Friday in the teams’ second tight pitchers’ duel in eight days.

Medford’s Martha Miller and Lakeland’s Saylor Timmerman were again on top of their games, just as they were in Medford’s 4-1 win on April 27. With the teams tied at 1-1 in the top of the seventh, the Raiders got a one-out single from Victoria Konieczny, just their second hit of the game off Timmerman. Konieczny stole second base, which was big as the next batter, Morgan Huegli reached out and pulled a tapper to third baseman Moriah Louis. Her throw to first base was fumbled by Lila Biller, allowing Huegli to reach. Biller turned her head toward the umpire for just a moment and that was enough for Koniecnzy to scoot all the way around and beat the throw home.

“Tori never stopped just kept on running,” head coach Virgil Berndt said.

That loomed large as Timmerman struck out Medford’s next two hitters to limit the damage. Miller sealed the win by getting a comebacker, a pop-up to Koniecnzy at first and a strikeout in the bottom half of the inning.

Miller allowed just three hits, two of them to Timmerman while striking out 10 and walking only one. The run was unearned. It came in the fourth when Hannah Louis reached on an error and eventually scored on Timmerman’s double. Lakeland only threatened one other time, putting two runners on base in the sixth on an error and a two-out walk. Miller got a strikeout to end that.

Timmerman struck out 14 Raiders and walked three in her tough-luck loss. Medford got its other run in the top of the first inning. Miller singled, stole second and, after Finley Arndt walked, Miller eventually scored on a Zayleah Leonhardt groundout.

Now 9-0 in the Great Northern Conference and 16-0 overall, the Raiders can clinch their third straight league title during a stretch of five games in four days to end this week.

It started Wednesday with a home game against Mosinee that was rescheduled from May 1. At 7-3 in the GNC, the Indians are on the verge of being mathematically eliminated in the title chase. Today, Thursday, Medford heads to Northland Pines for a 5 p.m. matchup with the last-place Eagles. That will be followed by, most likely, the biggest game of the week Friday when Medford goes to Antigo for a 4:30 p.m. first pitch and to wrap up the GNC season. The Red Robins have just one loss in league play, a 3-2 defeat at Medford April 13. They have a doubleheader at Tomahawk Thursday, host Mosinee in a rescheduled game Monday and go to Lakeland Tuesday.

On Saturday, Medford will host a 10 a.m. triangular, playing Neillsville first and St. Croix Central last in the tournament. The Warriors and Panthers will square off in the middle game of the day.

Medford hosts D.C. Everest Monday in another good non-conference matchup.

Medford 6, Tomahawk 1

A three-run rally in the top of the third inning put Medford in control during a 6-1 win at Tomahawk Thursday.

Medford got a run in the first on Allie Paulson’s RBI groundout and then pushed the lead to 4-0 with its gamebreaking rally. Arndt singled and stole second and Paulson walked. Leonhardt hit into a fielder’s choice that took out Arndt at third base. Eryka Seidl came through with a double that scored Paulson. Madisyn Pilgrim’s groundout drove home Leonhardt and Huegli knocked in the third run of the inning with a single.

That was more than enough for Miller, who struck out 13, walked three and allowed three hits. She allowed one hit and one walk through six innings and then ran into a little trouble in the last inning. A single and back-to-back walks loaded the bases with one out for Siennah Calkins, who singled in the Hatchets’ lone run. Two strikeouts ended the threat.

Medford tacked on single runs in the sixth and seventh frames. Jada Surek singled and scored on a Hatchet error on a ball hit by Miller in the sixth. Konieczny’s third hit of the game drove in Leonhardt, who had also singled, in the seventh. Konieczny had Medford’s other double in the win. Seidl was two for four at the plate.