BRODHEAD — Defending state champion Brodhead overcame a 2-1 deficit to defeat 4-seed Lodi 3-2 in a WIAA Division 3 regional championship game May 23. The Cardinals knotted the game on a wild pitch and took the lead on an RBI groundout in the fifth inning. Starting pitcher Ava Risum struck out three of the next seven batters to seal the deal.

“They are poised,” Brodhead head coach Steve Krupke said. “I’ve had teams in the past that got down, but they just kept grinding. They don’t give up. That’s what I’m proud of. We handle adversity. We have bad luck and we keep plugging away. They are competitors.”

Risum went to work right away, recording the first of her 15 strikeouts on the first at bat of the game. She got her second on just three pitches and ended the inning with a lineout.

Brodhead put pressure on Lodi right away in the first, as Jaelyn Hilliard legged out a one-out infield single. She advanced to second on a passed ball, and Leah Rear drew a two-out walk. Both runners advanced on a passed ball but were left stranded, as Blue Devil pitcher Bailey Stark escaped the jam with a strikeout.

Risum threw just eight pitches in the second frame, putting the bats back in her teammates’ hands. But Stark matched Risum’s energy. Outside of Jerrica Schwartz reaching on a dropped third strike, Stark retired three Cardinals on nine pitches in the bottom of the inning. Quickly back out on the mound, Risum upped it a notch, striking out the side.

The pitcher’s duel ended in the bottom of the third, as Sophia Leitzen roped a double to right that one hopped the fence. Hilliard appeared to have beaten out a bunt single — which would have put runners on first and third with no one out — but she was called out of the box for an out. Instead, Leitzen advanced to third on a groundout from Risum, and Rear walked to put runners on first and third with two outs. Ahead in the count 3-1, Allie Dahl snuck an RBI single between the third baseman and shortstop to put Brodhead on the board.

But the Blue Devils responded right away in the top of the fourth. 

After Risum struck out Elise Krumpen on three pitches, Taylor Reese reached on an error. Her grounder took a weird hop, hit shortstop Leitzen in the foot and rolled into the outfield. Another error led to Lodi’s first run of the game. Brielle Burrows lined a shot to right that Tessa Kloepping went all out for, but it snuck under her glove and went to the wall. Reese scored from first, and Burrows raced all the way to third.

Stark then helped herself at the plate, singling up the middle on an 0-2 count to give her team the lead. Risum limited the damage to two runs, striking out the final two batters.

“That’s one thing that’s hard for the defense to play behind because you don’t get a ball,” Krupke said of Risum, who also struck out 15 batters in a WIAA regional semifinal. “That one to Tess was just a bad hop. She didn’t do anything wrong. It’s hard to be ready for that kind of stuff, but it sure is nice to have a strikeout pitcher to bail you out sometimes. That’s what Ava’s been doing for years now.”

The Cardinals looked poised to respond in the bottom of the fourth, as Tatum Ceslok led off with a five-pitch walk. Keegan Steinke laid down a sacrifice bunt and — like Hilliard in the third — appeared to beat it out, but the ball hit her heel outside of the box and she was called out.

“Lately, I feel like we’ve made the softball gods mad or something because we’ve got other teams making great plays against us,” Krupke said. “We are getting good bunts down, but we are out of the box. We get a good bunt down, but it hits our heel. What do you do?”

Stark induced two groundouts to end the inning.

Risum struck out the side in the fifth, throwing just 10 pitches. In the bottom of the frame with the bats back in their hands, the Cardinals rallied.

Hilliard and Risum attacked early in the count, tallying back-to-back singles. Rear laid down a sacrifice bunt, moving both runners into scoring position. Stark battled control issues, going down in the count against Dahl and throwing a wild pitch that allowed Hilliard to score. Dahl gave her team the lead yet again with an RBI groundout to short.

“We just had to play with each other. We still had a couple innings to get it back,” Risum said of regaining the lead in the fifth. “We could do it. I don’t think there was ever a moment anyone was doubting us and our capabilities.”

Over the next two innings, Risum faced one batter over the minimum. Stark reached via an error on Risum in the seventh, but Risum bore down. Natalie Hellenbrand sacrificed, and Vivian Beld popped up to Hilliard. Risum got ahead of Lauren Burros, climbing the ladder each pitch. Before the final strikeout pitch, a smile erupted over Risum’s face, knowing she had a regional title in her clutches.

“After that first bunt and I couldn’t make the play, I just had to keep my head calm,” Risum said. “I knew we were going to get the next couple outs. Smiling always helps.”

Risum pitched a complete-game one-hitter, giving up two unearned runs. She struck out 15 and didn’t issue a walk. At the plate, Risum finished 1-for-4 with a run scored. Leitzen and Hilliard had multiple-hit games, while Dahl drove in two runs. Rear, who had no official at bats, walked twice. 

With the win, Brodhead claimed its second straight regional title. The Cardinals have been the 1-seed the last three seasons, hosting three regional championship games. Cambridge upset Brodhead 2-0 in the 2021 regional final, and Krupke and his squad have learned from it.

“That Cambridge game was a learning point for the program. You can’t just show up and teams will roll over for you. Lodi didn’t quit tonight,” Krupke said. “We had opportunities. I hope I’m not wrong, but I just think we are going to break out here in one of these games.”