BLANCHARDVILLE - Before the season, Pecatonica senior Kaleb Feller had not swung a bat since his sophomore year. Now Feller is making up for lost time.
Feller went 2-for-3 at the plate and lined a two-out, two-run single to left in the second inning to help lift the Vikings to a 3-1 WIAA Division 4 baseball regional semifinal win Tuesday over Shullsburg-Benton.
Feller credits more work in batting practice for his late-season success. After an ankle injury kept Feller from playing at 100 percent in the basketball tournament, he is excited to still be making the postseason run on the diamond.
"Hard work has paid off at the end of the season," Feller said. "I get a lot of encouragement from the other guys. I'm just stepping up to the plate with confidence. It's basically all mental and that is what I'm trying to do every time."
Fellow senior Milton Kurschner played mental games with Shullsburg-Benton on the mound, mixing in a heavy diet of offspeed pitches with various deliveries, including sidearm, to toss a two-hitter.
Kurschner retired the first 11 batters he faced. He struck out seven of the first nine batters. Kurschner had his no-hit bid broke up in the fifth when Brent Krautz lined a single to center.
"They (Shullsburg-Benton) were waiting on my fastball," Kurschner said. "(Bryan) Daley started calling curveballs and they started dropping in for strikes, so we stayed with it."
Pecatonica (21-1) will host Barneveld in a WIAA Division 4 regional championship game at 4:30 p.m. today. Barneveld beat Southwestern 2-1 in Tuesday's other regional semifinal. Barneveld is the only team to beat Pecatonica this year. The teams split their Six Rivers East Conference games. They've also split postseason showdowns the past two years.
"It's been a nice rivalry," Kurschner said. "I would like to make it 2-1."
In a pitcher's duel with both teams managing only two hits, Shullsburg-Benton pitcher Colton Laird was almost as dominant as Kurschner.
"It's what high school baseball should be about," Pecatonica coach Jim Strommen said, citing spectacular pitching and clutch hitting with runners in scoring position. "When you play in the tournament, every game gets bigger. Laird is a very good pitcher. If you are a competitor, that's the type of game you want to play in."
The Vikings took advantage of some wildness by Laird in the second. He walked Bryan Daley and hit Harley Demler. The Vikings loaded the bases after Chris Hendrickson coaxed a walk. That set the stages for Feller, who delivered a two-run single to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead. Laird pitched six innings and walked six and hit two.
Feller smoked a double to right leading off the fifth and scored on Kurschner's RBI groundout.
The bottom of the seventh inning got off to an inauspicious start when Laird shattered his aluminum bat and reached on an error. Bryce Blackbourn followed with a single and the Miners brought the game-tying run to the plate. The rally was short-circuited after Pecatonica junior second baseman Devin Jeglum turned a double play. Kurschner then induced Ross Westnmeier to ground out to end a two-hit complete game. Kurschner gave up one unearned run, while striking out 10, walking one and hitting one.
"I have two very good pitchers," Strommen said of Kurschner and Lee Vlasak, who is expected to get the start in the regional title game against Barneveld today.
"You hope he could finish the game," Strommen said of Kurschner. "He got into a little jam. Milt finished the game. Lee had warmed up," Strommen said. "If we needed him, I could have brought him in."
There are no secrets with a regional final on deck against the Eagles. Strommen knows what to expect with a sectional berth at stake.
"They (Barneveld) are our rival," he said. "It was a great atmosphere today. It will be even a bigger atmosphere tomorrow. When we play Barneveld, it's always a tough, competitive game."
Feller went 2-for-3 at the plate and lined a two-out, two-run single to left in the second inning to help lift the Vikings to a 3-1 WIAA Division 4 baseball regional semifinal win Tuesday over Shullsburg-Benton.
Feller credits more work in batting practice for his late-season success. After an ankle injury kept Feller from playing at 100 percent in the basketball tournament, he is excited to still be making the postseason run on the diamond.
"Hard work has paid off at the end of the season," Feller said. "I get a lot of encouragement from the other guys. I'm just stepping up to the plate with confidence. It's basically all mental and that is what I'm trying to do every time."
Fellow senior Milton Kurschner played mental games with Shullsburg-Benton on the mound, mixing in a heavy diet of offspeed pitches with various deliveries, including sidearm, to toss a two-hitter.
Kurschner retired the first 11 batters he faced. He struck out seven of the first nine batters. Kurschner had his no-hit bid broke up in the fifth when Brent Krautz lined a single to center.
"They (Shullsburg-Benton) were waiting on my fastball," Kurschner said. "(Bryan) Daley started calling curveballs and they started dropping in for strikes, so we stayed with it."
Pecatonica (21-1) will host Barneveld in a WIAA Division 4 regional championship game at 4:30 p.m. today. Barneveld beat Southwestern 2-1 in Tuesday's other regional semifinal. Barneveld is the only team to beat Pecatonica this year. The teams split their Six Rivers East Conference games. They've also split postseason showdowns the past two years.
"It's been a nice rivalry," Kurschner said. "I would like to make it 2-1."
In a pitcher's duel with both teams managing only two hits, Shullsburg-Benton pitcher Colton Laird was almost as dominant as Kurschner.
"It's what high school baseball should be about," Pecatonica coach Jim Strommen said, citing spectacular pitching and clutch hitting with runners in scoring position. "When you play in the tournament, every game gets bigger. Laird is a very good pitcher. If you are a competitor, that's the type of game you want to play in."
The Vikings took advantage of some wildness by Laird in the second. He walked Bryan Daley and hit Harley Demler. The Vikings loaded the bases after Chris Hendrickson coaxed a walk. That set the stages for Feller, who delivered a two-run single to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead. Laird pitched six innings and walked six and hit two.
Feller smoked a double to right leading off the fifth and scored on Kurschner's RBI groundout.
The bottom of the seventh inning got off to an inauspicious start when Laird shattered his aluminum bat and reached on an error. Bryce Blackbourn followed with a single and the Miners brought the game-tying run to the plate. The rally was short-circuited after Pecatonica junior second baseman Devin Jeglum turned a double play. Kurschner then induced Ross Westnmeier to ground out to end a two-hit complete game. Kurschner gave up one unearned run, while striking out 10, walking one and hitting one.
"I have two very good pitchers," Strommen said of Kurschner and Lee Vlasak, who is expected to get the start in the regional title game against Barneveld today.
"You hope he could finish the game," Strommen said of Kurschner. "He got into a little jam. Milt finished the game. Lee had warmed up," Strommen said. "If we needed him, I could have brought him in."
There are no secrets with a regional final on deck against the Eagles. Strommen knows what to expect with a sectional berth at stake.
"They (Barneveld) are our rival," he said. "It was a great atmosphere today. It will be even a bigger atmosphere tomorrow. When we play Barneveld, it's always a tough, competitive game."
