Chatfield junior pitcher Lexi Chase headlines the post-season softball award winners list. For a second time she is named Class AA All-State. It’s her fourth time to make that list overall (HM as an 8th grader, 2nd team as a frosh). Chatfield’s TRC-West champions, Section Final Four appearance, 19-6 season was largely on Chase’s right arm. She went 14-5 on the mound. Three losses came to section runner-up Cotter (where Lexi gave up just two total earned runs), another to state champion Rochester-Lourdes. In 118 2/3 innings pitched she racked up 202 strikeouts, just 23 walks, with a 1.12 ERA. Chase had 12 double-digit strikeout games, five (variable-inning) no hitters, and three (variable-inning) perfect games. She was also hit over .500 with a team-high ten doubles, two home runs, and team second-bests in RBI s (21) and runs (25). Three other Gophers, Belle Berg (Sr. SS > .376 average, 2 HRs, 18 RBI, team-best 27 runs), Carlie Berge (Jr. 3B/P > .351 average, nine 2Bs, 11 RBIs, 15 runs, 5-1 pitching), and Peyton Berg (Fr. C > .341 average, team-best 4 HRs, 37 RBIs, 12 multi-RBI games) are also TRC. Belle Berg finishes her five-year starter career with over 100 RBIs and 23 home runs. Gopher teams went 97-23 during her career. Chase and Belle were named All-Section, and each rake in their fourth All-TRC award. Berge earned her third All-TRC nod. Fillmore Central/Lanesboro’s K.J. Corson (So., SS > team bests .343 average, .456 on base, 17 runs) is also All-TRC and All-Section. R-P’s Karissa Eide (So., 3B > .288 average, .456 on base, team-best 15 runs) makes All-TRC. Corson and Eide were their teams’ respective lead-off hitters. Trojan Peyton Hoiness (Sr. P > .319 average, pitched 83 of 114 innings) is All-TRC HM. In the SEC, Mabel-Canton and GMLOK each get two All-league picks. Lexi Thorson (Sr. 1B > .388 average, seven 2Bs, GS-HR, team-high 26 runs, team-high 20 RBIs) and Kenidi McCabe (So. SS > team-high .487 average, team-high eight 2Bs, team-high 20 RBIs, team-second-best 25 runs) get the honors for the Cougars, each repeating (McCabe 2018, Thorson 2016) after having helped M-C to a 1A East title, a Section 1A Runner-Up finish. Thorson had 20-plus RBI each of the last three seasons. For her five-year career, she hit an impressive .400 with 94 total RBIs. Liz Jacobsen (Sr. C > .316 average, 12 RBI) and Masie Voigt (Sr. 3B > .340 average, 20 BBs, 22 runs) get the honors for the Bulldogs. Jacobson is a three-time all-league selection, a four-year starter who played on three GMLOK winning teams, aiding pitchers Alayna Meskill and Lily Hughes to good seasons. Voigt, the lead-off hitter, had eight double-digit walk games. Houston gets one All-SEC pick in five-year player Alyssa Rostad (Sr. C > team-second-best .426 average, team-best 19 RBI, team-best 19 runs). M-C’s Hannah Snell (Sr. 3B > .312 average, five 3Bs, 23 runs), GMLOK’s Lily Hughes (So. P > 10-8, 117 IP, 176 K, 46 BB, 1.85 ERA, .359 average, 9 RBIs, 10 runs), and Houston’s Gretchen Hill (Sr. SS/2B > .358 average, 11 RBI, 10 runs) are All-SEC Honorable Mention. M-C’s Thorson, McCabe, Snell, Payton Danielson (Jr. CF > .333 average, 18 RBIs, 22 runs), Emily Carolan (Fr. P > .303 average, 13 RBIs, 141 IP, 15-8, 3.38 ERA), and Jordyn Newgard (So. LF > .361 average, eight 2Bs, team-high 20 RBIs, 19 runs) were all named All-Section.
On the baseball diamond, another right arm heads the cast. GMLOK’s Drew Copley (Sr. P/SS) is the SEC Player of the Year after a huge season offensively (team-leader with .554 average, ten 2Bs, 4 HRs, and 28 RBI) and on the mound (65 1/3 IP, 6-1, 109 K, 14 BBs, .321 ERA). He was the main impetous in the Bulldogs going 17-3 and posting their first (ever?) league baseball title. Drew gave up just 12 total runs, three earned runs. He was All-TRC in 2017. He is joined on the All-SEC list by lead-off man Reid Kruegel (Sr. CF > .443 average, five 2Bs, HR, 16 SB, 22 runs) and Dustin Copley (Fr. P/SS > .404 average, four 2Bs, 2 3Bs, HR, 17 RBI, 20 runs, 13 SB). The later had three memorable game-winning hits. Chatfield sports four All-TRC picks. Lincoln Salisbury (Sr. C > .288 average, six 2B, HR, 13 RBI, team-second best 19 runs, 17 BBs), Zach Roline (Sr. 1B > .333 average, team-high 20 RBI), Henry Gathje (So. P/IF > .316 average, two HR, team-high 20 RBI), and Max Aug (So. P/IF) are the foursome. Aug repeats as All-TRC after pulling double duty for the Gophers (team-high .393 average, HR, 19 RBIs, 15 runs, 41 1/3 IP, 4-2, 48 K, 22 BB, team-low 2.20 ERA). Rushford-Peterson gets two All-TRC picks in Carter Weidemann (Sr. C > team-highs .493 average, .821 slugging, seven 2Bs, county-high five HRs, 16 RBIs, team-second-best 13 runs) and Nolan Mueller (Sr. P/1B > .339 average, team-high seven 2Bs, 10 RBIs, 9 runs, 48 2/3 IP, 6-3, 48 K, 14 BB, 2.87 ERA). Each are four-year starters. Weidemann had a huge two-year run, hitting .412 with 14 extra base hits, 31 RBI, and 16 runs in 2018. Chatfield’s Seth Allen (Sr. OF > 17 BBs, team-high 26 runs) and R-P’s Tim Highum (Sr. P/IF > team-second best 31 2/3 IP) are All-TRC HM. Back to the SEC, Mabel-Canton and Houston each get one All-SEC pick in Drew Wyffels (Sr. SS/P) and Caiden Olson (So. P/IF > team-leading.446 average, nine 2Bs, 12 RBI, & 16 runs) respectively. Wyffels is a four-time All-SEC pick, and a two-time two-sport (baseball/track and field) spring sports All-Conference award winner. GMLOK’s Nolan Skifter (Jr. C), M-C’s Parker Ingvalson (Jr. P/IF), and Houston’s James Hongerholt (Sr. SS > .378 average, six 2B, 11 runs) are named All-SEC HM.
*All stats based off team’s individual real-time calculations.