PLATTEVILLE — Platteville softball coach Becca Lowe said prior to the season that she believed her team could compete for this year’s conference title.
Lowe’s Hillmen are backing up their coach’s preseason proclamation.
Platteville blanked visiting Prairie du Chien 7–0 last Tuesday, scored two runs in the top of the seventh to upend host River Valley 8–6 on Thursday, then belted out 16 hits in a dominating 13–2 conference win at Lancaster Friday afternoon to remain in a first-place tie with Dodgeville (5–0, 4–0 SWC).
“Starting 4–0 in conference is very exciting,” said Platteville head coach Becca Lowe. “It shows how much work and dedication we have put in this year. We have a tough conference and we have to mentally prepare for every team. The girls have shown great discipline at the plate, which has done great things for us this year.”
Sophomore Abby Wackershauser and junior Kaycie Wagner combined on a five-hit shutout in Tuesday’s win over Prairie du Chien.
Wackershauser (3–1) pitched the first four innings, striking out three and allowing just three hits.
Wagner came on in the fifth inning and closed out the game — a one-two punch Lowe has opted to use on multiple occasions this year — and struck out four and allowed just two hits to record the save. Wagner also went 2-for-3 and drove in three runs in the victory. She had an RBI triple in the first, a sac fly in Platteville’s four-run fifth and an RBI single in the sixth.
Thursday at River Valley, junior catcher Anica Graney ripped an RBI double in the top of the seventh to break a 6–6 tie after the Blackhawks tied the game with two unearned runs in the sixth.
Brea Moon added two-out RBI single to score Graney with a needed insurance run.
Wagner, who hit a solo homer in the third inning, worked around three Platteville errors to earn the 121-pitch, complete game victory, allowing six runs, three earned, on nine hits and three walks.
Friday at Lancaster, Wagner collected a team-high three hits and three RBI, including a two-run homer in Platteville’s five run sixth. She also pitched the final three innings to earn the save.
Graney (3-for-3) and sophomores Josie Nies (3-for-4) and Sami Martin (3-for-4) also had three hits apiece for the victorious Hillmen.
Saturday afternoon the Hillmen made it five straight wins with non-conference victories over Arcadia and La Crosse Aquinas at the four-team Prairie du Chien Invitational.
Jordan Brunton’s two-run home run in the bottom of the third lifted the Hillmen to a 3–2 victory over Arcadia in the semifinals.
Wagner (5–2) hit a solo homer in the bottom of the first and picked up her third save of the week with two perfect innings of relief.
Wackershauser struck out seven and allowed just two runs, one earned, on five hits in five strong innings to earn her third win of the season.
The Hillmen finished the day by hammered La Crosse Aquinas 10–5 in the championship game, the very same Aquinas team that ended Platteville’s 2017 season with a 3–0 Division 3 regional semifinal victory.
Six different players — Nies, Wagner, Graney, Martin, Moon and Amber Lancaster — had two hits apiece to propel the Hillmen. Martin drove in three runs.
“Winning at Prairie du Chien was a big step for our team,” said Lowe. “Those teams, Arcadia and Aquinas, are on the other side of our bracket for regionals and to come out with two head-to-head wins is huge when I go to the seeding meeting,” said Lowe. “Our win against Aquinas was something big for the girls this year, because it was the team who knocked us out of postseason last year. Getting that win was a big confidence booster for us.”
The Hillmen traveled to Richland Center Tuedsay and will square off with fellow SWC leader Dodgeville Thursday at 5 p.m. at Platteville’s Legion Park. Platteville will then host Lancaster on Tuesday.
“The key for our team this year has been each batter knowing their role,” said Lowe. “What is our role as a batter when we step into the box. Is it their job to get on? To put a bunt down? Or to score runners? We have really been focusing on that mentality of the game and reiterating those concepts to the girls. They have done a great job of now starting to think of those things on their own, which has led to great wins.”
Platteville 7, Prairie du Chien 0
(from Tuesday, April 24 @ Platteville)
Prairie du Chien 000 000 0 — 0 5 2
Platteville 200 041 x — 7 10 0
Leading hitters — PdC: Wikan 2x2; Pla: Amber Lancaster 2x3, Kaycie Wagner 2x3. 2B — PdC: Wikan, Kennedy; Pla: Anica Graney, Josie Nies. 3B — Pla: Sami Martin, Wagner.
W — Abby Wackershauer (1–1, 4IP, 3H, 0R, 3K, 1BB). L — Wikan (6IP, 10H, 7R, 5ER, 2K, 2BB). SV — Kaycie Wagner (1, 3IP, 2H, 0R, 4K, 0BB).
Platteville 8, River Valley 6
(from Thursday, April 26 @ Spring Green)
Platteville 001 230 2 — 8 14 3
River Valley 003 012 0 — 6 9 2
Leading hitters — P: Kaycie Wagner 3x5, Anica Graney 3x3, Mary Timmerman 2x4; RV: JJ Nelson 2x4, Brown 2x4. 2B — P: Jordan Brunton, Graney 2, Sami Martin. HR — P: Wagner; RV: Johnson.
W — Kaycie Wagner (4–2, 7IP, 9H, 6R, 3ER, 6K, 3BB). L — Ali Hoffman 2.2IP, 5H, 3R, 1ER, 1K, 1BB).
Platteville 13, Lancaster 2
(from Friday, April 27 @ Lancaster)
Platteville 103 135 — 13 16 0
Lancaster 001 010 — 2 5 3
Leading hitters — P: Josie Nies 3x4, Kaycie Wagner 3x4, Anica Graney 3x3, Sami Martin 3x4, Jordan Brunton 2x4; L: Sydney Taylor 2x2. 2B — P: Jordan Brunton, Graney, Lancaster, Wagner; L: Taylor. HR — P: Wagner.
W — Abby Wackershauser (2–1, 3IP, 2H, 1ER, 2K, 1BB). L — Hannah Riley (3IP, 7H, 6R, 5ER, 1K, 0BB). SV —Kaycie Wagner (2, 3IP, 3H, 1ER, 4K, 1BB).
Prairie du Chien Tournament
Platteville 3, Arcadia 2
(from Saturday, April 28 @ Prairie du Chien)
Arcadia 101 000 0 — 2 5 0
Platteville 102 000 x — 3 4 1
Leading hitters — A: Rylie Haines 2x2. 2B — A: Haines; P: Allie Cooley.
W — Abby Wackershauser (3–1, 5IP, 5H, 2R, 1ER, 7K, 0BB). L — Bjorje (6IP, 4H, 3ER, 3K, 3BB). SV — Kaycie Wagner (3, 2IP, 0H, 0R, 1K, 0BB).
Prairie du Chien Tournament
Platteville 10, La Crosse Aquinas 5
(from Saturday, April 28 @ Prairie du Chien)
Platteville 310 510 — 10 13 4
Aquinas 011 030 — 5 8 5
Leading hitters — P: Josie Nies 2x4, Amber Lancaster 2x3, Kaycie Wagner 2x4, Anica Graney 2x4, Sami Martin 2x4, Brea Moon 2x4; A: Hurtsman 2x3, English 2x3, Meloy 2x3. 2B — P: Anica Graney, Martin; A: Hurstman 2, Meloy.
W — Kaycie Wagner (5–2, 6IP, 8H, 5R, 2ER, 4K, 4BB). L — Trussoni (6IP, 13H, 10R, 7ER, 0K, 0BB).
