It just wasn’t their day.
The New London girls’ softball team was stifled by the Mosinee Indians in the WIAA Division 2 State Championship game on Saturday, June 14, at Goodman Softball Complex.
The Indians walked away with a 2-0 victory over the Bulldogs.
Mosinee pitcher Rochelle Koshalek kept New London’s hitters on their heels throughout the game with a mix of off-speed pitches and a daunting fastball. She allowed just three hits while striking out eight batters.
New London never mounted a challenge until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Morgan Gorges hit a two-out single. Leah Porath followed with another single to bring the winning run to the plate, but the game ended on a pop-up to third base for the final out.
Shelby Sommer pitched a great game for New London, allowing only four hits. Two of Mosinee’s hits came in the fourth inning, translating into a one-run lead.
A triple in the sixth inning followed by a sacrifice fly gave Mosinee a 2-0 lead.
Porath led New London’s offense with two hits.
New London’s defense committed two errors in the game, while Mosinee had no errors.
Though their stellar season fell short of their title hopes, the Bulldogs did well to bring home the runner-up trophy.
“You gotta give it to Mosinee,” said Co-Head Coach Laura Turner. “They played a great game and the pitcher did a great job pitching. Their offense, they put the ball into play and hit some gaps.
“What can you do? Sometimes it’s going to fall your way and sometimes it won’t.”
The Bulldogs will lose Mickey Roland, Lexi Roland, Jenna Mytton, Morgan Gorges, and Beth Starcheske to graduation, but Turner said the program should be in good shape next year.
“Our program is definitely a very high level,” Turner said. “We have a lot of girls coming back, but at the same time we’re going to miss every single one of the seniors. They gave their heart and soul to the program for the last how many years. They’re wonderful kids and we never want to see any of them go but we have a nice youth program and the kids are working hard advancing through.”
Division 2 Semifinals
New London 4, New Berlin Eisenhower 3
It seemed that the Bulldogs would cruise into the championship game with no problems, as they held a 3-1 lead in the top of the seventh inning and were one out away from advancing—but New Berlin Eisenhower wasn’t quite ready to call it a game.
Steffi Lombardo ripped a two-run home run to right field to tie the game, suddenly erasing New London’s comfortable lead and stir some uneasy feelings among Bulldog fans.
Fortunately for New London, the heart of the batting order came to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning, and they did not disappoint.
Two singles by McCoy Mix and Alanna Beyer put runners on first and second with no outs, and then Payton Mix ripped a walk-off RBI single to end the game, scoring her sister McCoy from second base.
Payton Mix helped New London score their first run of the game in the third inning, laying down a squeeze bunt. New London added two runs in the fifth inning on a two-out, two-run double by Morgan Gorges, who hit the ball over the center fielder’s head.
Sommer pitched a great game for New London, allowing only six hits and relying on the Bulldog defense to get out of a few jams in the middle innings.