MONROE — In a matchup of two of the top teams in the Rock Valley Conference, the Monroe Cheesemakers blasted the Evansville Blue Devils 11-0 in five innings on Thursday, April 23.
The Cheesemakers went right to work in the first inning as Jayde Hawkinson, Maddi Ruegsegger, and Kaegann Paulson each scored a run to give the Cheese a 3-0 lead.
Paulson hit a solo homer in the third to extend the Cheesemakers’ lead to 4-0. They made it 6-0 in the fourth inning as Fiona Junk scored on a single by Amaira Collins, who later scored on an infield single by Ruegsegger.
The Cheesemakers put the game away with a five-run fifth inning. Two runs scored on a double by Ivie Ellenson, then Hawkinson ended the game with a three-run homer to right, a towering blast with Ellenson and Kaya Holverson on base.
“I knew it the moment I hit it. It felt good. I was looking for an inside pitch,” Hawkinson said.
Hawkinson finished the day 2x4 with a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored.
Paulson was 2x3 at the plate with a home run, two RBIs and scored two runs. Ellenson went 2x2 with a double, drove in two runs, and scored a run.
In the pitching circle, Paulson was magnificent as she threw a five-hit shutout with just one walk and six strikeouts.
Cheesemakers coach Joe O’Leksy had a lot of praise for Paulson for both her pitching and hitting.
“All around, she’s a great pitcher, a great defender, a great hitter. That’s why she’s two-time All-State. She doesn’t get the gaudy numbers a lot of other pitchers get. But, she gets ground balls and gets girls to go after her pitches,” O’Leksy said.
The Monroe Cheesemakers also won all three games they played in the Monroe Tournament on Saturday, April 25.
Monroe 20, Madison La Follette/East 1
Annika Folk drove in five runs on four hits, including two doubles and Hawkinson and Paulson had three RBIs each as the Cheesemakers scored a season-high 20 runs.
Ruegsegger pitched four innings and allowed just one run on four hits with one walk and seven strikeouts.
Monroe 9, Beloit Memorial 4
Ruegsegger hit a triple and a double, and Paizley Kundert hit a triple and scored two runs while Hawkinson slashed two doubles and scored two runs to lead the Cheesemakers to a 9-4 win over Beloit Memorial.
Paulson scattered 10 hits over seven innings and allowed one earned run with no walks and nine strikeouts.
The Cheesemakers scored five runs over the first five innings, then pulled away with four runs in the sixth.
Monroe 9, Tomahawk 1
The Cheesemakers beat the Hatchets by scoring five runs over the first two innings, then put the game away with a four-run seventh inning.
Paulson used her hitting and pitching to lead the Cheesemakers. She went 4x5 with three RBIs and scored a run at the plate and pitched all seven innings, allowing just one run on three hits. She walked four and struck out 11.
Hawkinson and Ruegsegger each drove in two runs.
With the three wins, Monroe (12-2) is scheduled to go to Brodhead on Tuesday, April 28 for an RVC crossover game. The Cardinals beat the Cheesemakers 10-2 to win a regional championship last year.
