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SUPPZ.COM ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Kobe Vosberg
Vosberg perfect in Cubans rout of Iowa-Grant
Vosberg
Cuba City senior Kobe Vosberg threw 47 of his 53 pitches for strikes, fanning 14 of the 15 batters he faced en route to a five-inning perfect game to lead the Cubans to a 26–0 win over Iowa–Grant last Tuesday.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Swnews4u.com Athlete of the Week is a web-only feature that will publish each Thursday throughout the calendar year.

by Tom Gunnell, Tri-County Press/Republican Journal

Kobe Vosberg, Sr., P, Cuba City baseball
LIVINGSTON – Cuba City senior Kobe Vosberg was perfect on the mound and nearly perfect at the plate in leading the Cubans to a 26–0 SWAL baseball victory over the host Iowa-Grant Panthers on Tuesday, April 12.

Vosberg (2–0) threw 47 of his 53 pitches for strikes, fanning 14 of the 15 batters he faced en route to a five-inning perfect game as the Panthers were unable to get a runner on the base paths all game. Vosberg struck the Panthers out in order in the first three innings. A line out to right to start the I-G was the only ball in play for the hosts all game as the Cubans’ right-hander went on to strikeout the final five batters he faced to finish of his gem.

“I thought Kobe pitched really well. He really pounded the zone with his fastball and was very effective with that pitch,” said Cuba City head coach Steve Graber.

At the plate, Vosberg helped himself by going 2-for-4 with four runs driven in and two runs scored in the win. He also got plenty of support from his teammates as five others drove in multiple runs and six players scored multiple times in the rout. The Cubans (4-1 overall, 2-0 SWAL) grabbed a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning, and then plated 10 insurance runs in the second and 13 in the third to run away with the game.

“It was just one of those games offensively that things went right for us. I thought we did a nice job of putting the ball in play and capitalizing on some mistakes that Iowa-Grant made. We want to continue to get better each time we take the field,” Graber commented.


HONORABLE MENTION (in alphabetical order):
Carley Jo Brownlee, Sr., P, Riverdale softball
Brownlee struck out 14 batters and allowed just one earned run on four hits in a 5–4 eight-inning victory over Richland Center Tuesday afternoon. The Chieftains (6–1) won the game on walk-off fielder's choice by Camryn Bird, when Alli Hernan beat the throw from shortstop to the plate on a ground ball by Bird.


Gretta Grassel, So., P, Boscobel softball
Grassel struck out 18 Wildcats and went 2-for-2 with a double and a home run to lead Boscobel to a 5–1 Southwest Wisconsin Activities League victory.


Lauren Helms, Sr., OF, Belmont softball
Belmont senior Lauren Helms finished 5-for-5 at the plate with six runs driven in and four runs scored in the game. The left fielder lined a RBI-single in the four-run first inning to put Belmont ahead to stay, and then launched a grand slam home run in the seven-run third and added another RBI-single in the five-run fifth.


Kayci Martensen, Sr., Benton/Scales Mound/Shullsburg track and field
Benton/Scales Mound/Shullsburg senior Kayci Martensen broke the tape to win the girls’ mile race at the 54th annual Volunteer Track Classic hosted by the Knoxville Track Club at the University of Tennessee’s Tom Black Track on Friday and Saturday, April 15-16. Martensen trailed Caryn Rippey of Wilson (PA) — the 2021 AAU National Cross Country Champion — by about 10 meters with 150 meters remaining, but the BSMS senior out–sprinted Rippey to the finish with a lean at the tape to come away with a hard earned victory in a time of 5:04.02. Rippey finished second at 5:04.47.


Jackson Soja, Sr., OF, Cuba City baseball
Cuba City senior left fielder Jackson Soja finished 4-for-4 on the day with a double, seven RBI and three runs scored. He had two-runs singles in the first and second stanzas and drilled a two-run double and a RBI-single in the third frame. 


Jordan Stanton, Sr., P, Southwestern baseball
Southwestern pitcher Jordan Stanton tossed three perfect innings in the Wildcats' 4–1 SWAL win over Darlington on Tuesday, April 12, and then came back firing six and two-thirds scoreless innings to lead the 'Cats over Fennimore in a 4–0 SWAL win on Tuesday, April 19. He struck out all nine batters he faced in a no-decision against the Redbirds, and he scattered five hits while striking out 16 batters and walking just one in Tuesday's win over the Golden Eagles. He also scored a run in that game.