The Tomahawk softball team is on a roll as they hit regional action last week.
The Hatchet girls locked down a second place GNC finish by beating conference champs Mosinee 2-0 on the road Friday. Mosinee lost just two conference games this season – both to Tomahawk.
Tomahawk got on the board early with a run in the top of the first. They added another in the fifth, which would prove to be enough as Hatchet ace Rachel Dallman served up a one-hitter while blanking the Indians.
Dallman was lights-out from the circle, striking out 12 and walking none in the seven-inning outing.
“Not giving up walks is huge,” said THS coach John Larson. “She is making teams work for base runners.”
Offensively, Katy Volz was 2-4 and Whitney Osero was 2-3.
“We now carry a tremendous amount of momentum into regional play,” Larson said. “You always want to be playing your best ball at tournament time and we are doing just that.”
Tomahawk had a couple of tight games against solid GNC foes earlier in the week, with mixed results.
On Tuesday, the Hatchets locked into a battle at Medford. After two scoreless innings, Tomahawk plated four in the top of the third and maintained a lead until the bottom of the seventh. Tomahawk saw a 7-5 lead turn into an 8-7 loss on a three-run walk off homer by Medford’s Hailee Clausnitzer.
“Although this was not one of our best games of the year, we played well enough to win,” Larson said. “Credit goes to Medford for hanging in there and winning it in the last inning.”
Dallman allowed 10 hits while striking out 12. At the plate, Volz was 3-5 with two doubles and Jordyn Kaminski was 1-2 with a double and two RBIs.
On Thursday, the Hatchets and Hodags put on a show that went nine innings before Tomahawk pulled out the 6-5 win. Tomahawk held a 3-1 lead going into the seventh, when Rhinelander’s Makayla Kuester popped a two-out, full-count grand slam home run to put the Hodags up 5-3. Tomahawk came back in the bottom of the inning to tie the game at 5-5 on a two-RBI Volz single, forcing extra innings.
After a scoreless eighth inning, Tomahawk scored the winning run in the bottom of the sixth. With two out and two on, Holley Winker came up with the clutch base hit to score Courtney Theiler and win the game.
“This was a great high school softball game,” Larson said. “There was no quit in both teams. The girls never quit and we came up with big hits when we needed to.”
Dallman went the distance, striking out nine while giving up eight hits.
Volz was 2-5 at the plate with 2 RBIs, Dallman was 2-4 with an RBI and Taylor Shilts was 1-4 with a double.
Tomahawk opened regional play last Wednesday, hosting Omro.