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The
Official Newspaper of Anamosa, located in Jones County, Iowa
Anamosa News
Since 1855
 Thursday, August 23, 2007
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Fawn Creek takes 3-Rivers golf title
By
Daryl Schepanski - Sports Editor |
ANAMOSA — A stark contrast in weather conditions didn’t faze the Fawn Creek Country Club one bit on their bid to win the annual men’s Three-Rivers golf championship Saturday, August 18, looking to join the Wapsi Country Club as their respective league title holders.
A week ago, Wapsi cruised to the Eastern Iowa tournament championship as the club hosted the event and Saturday, Fawn Creek also hosted and also claimed the title with temperatures about 30-degrees cooler for Three-Rivers golfers.
Fawn Creek opened with a 547 after the first nine holes of the tournament, which was delayed by rain early on. The day then saw plenty of sunshine though temperatures in the 60’s kept golfers chilly and conditions not exactly ideal for low scoring.
The Anamosa team came back with a blistering 359 over their final nine holes of play and overall tallied a 906 to take the Three-Rivers championships by 19 shots over runner-up Bellevue.
Fawn Creek golfers dominated the leader board from the outset as four of the top-6 scores in the entire tournament came from the host club as well as nine of the top-20 scores.
Fawn Creek’s Steve Vaughn and Al Norton tied with Bellevue’s Jacob Gothard for the individual top spot with even-par rounds of 72. After a one-hole playoff, it was Gothard who claimed the Three Rivers individual championship.
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Consistent scoring
Fawn Creek’s Darwin Carstensen chips to the par-5 fifth green during Anamosa’s big Three-Rivers golf championship Saturday, August 18, on the Fawn Creek Country Club course. Cartsensen was one of a whopping 13 Fawn Creek golfers to shoot scores in the 70’s helping the hosts to the easy tournament triumph. (Journal-Eureka photo by Daryl Schepanski) |
Gothard (38-34) edged Vaughn (38-34) and Norton (35-37) for the title winning a playoff on Fawn Creek’s par-3 No. 9 hole.
Vaughn was second overall and Norton third after the playoff.
Mike Carrier (36-37) and Jeff Ditch (39-34) also added top-5 overall scores for the Fawn Creek team each making their way through the picturesque Fawn Creek course with cards of 73 each to tie with Lowden 3/30’s Andy Kahl who also shot a 73 (38-35).
Fawn Creek and Bellevue were the class of the entire tournament placing seven golfers in the top-10 overall and 13 of the top-20 at the meet that boasted some of the top talent in eastern Iowa from not only Anamosa and Bellevue, but Wheatland Wapsi Oaks, Wyoming Little Bear, Dubuque Timberline, Maquoketa, Lowden 3/30 and Preston Plum River clubs.
While Vaughn and Norton led the Fawn Creek team with their rounds at the one-day, 18-hole tournament, it was Fawn Creek’s amazing consistency from top-to-bottom that guided the club to their victory.
Of the 14 Anamosa golfers to take to the Fawn Creek course, 13 shot rounds in the 70’s.
After Vaughn, Norton, Carrier and Ditch, Rich DeLong came through with a fine 75 (38-37) as did Dan Messerli (38-37), who along with Norton, helped guide the Wapsi team to the championship just a week earlier.
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Rolling to the win
Jeff Ditch sinks a putt on the second hole Saturday, August 18, for Fawn Creek during Three-Rivers golf action. Ditch tied for fourth overall in the tournament firing a sensational one-over-par round of 73 (39-34) for the hosts. (Journal-Eureka photo by Daryl Schepanski) |
Mitch Martensen (41-35) and Darin Sander (41-35) each tallied rounds of 76 for the hosts while Doug Brock (40-38) and Darwin Carstensen came through with scores of 78.
Tom Ridgeway (41-38), Dennis LaBarge (36-43) and Chuck Shada added 79’s for the Fawn Creek team while Tracy Bergman came through with an 83 (45-38).
Wyoming’s Little Bear, which finished fourth overall in the team standings, were led by Shane Leslie with a 75 (38-37) which was 11th overall in the tournament.
Mike Williams (39-37) and Kasey Brecht (36-40) scored rounds of 76 each while Casey Huston added a 77 (42-35). Riley Williams scored a 79 (40-39) with Dave Buchholtz adding an 80 (41-39).
Lee Williams tallied an 81 (43-38) as did Jim Smith (42-39) for the Little Bear team while Gary King scored an 82 (41-41).
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All over the pin
Tom Ridgeway chips to the pin at the second hole helping Fawn Creek to a Three-Rivers golf tournament championship the Anamosa club hosted Saturday, August 18. (Journal-Eureka photo by Daryl Schepanski) |
D.J. Topping tallied an 83 (42-41) with Doug Dammann scoring an 84 (46-38). Johny Moore had an 86 (41-45) while Scot Rains (45-43) and Kevin Kiburz (47-50) rounded out the Little Bear scoring with cards of 88 and 97, respectively.
Trailing Fawn Creek’s 906 championship score were Bellevue (925), Wapsi Oaks (949), Little Bear (960), Timberline (962), Maquoketa (980), 3/30 (1016) and Plum River (1026).
Joining Gothard, Vaughn, Norton, Carrier, Ditch and Kahl in the tournament top-10 scoring was Bellevue’s Doug Even (36-38) and Chris Frank (38-36), Timberline’s Andy Callahan (39-35) and Bellevue’s Mike Griebel (36-38) who all fired rounds of 74 each.
Messerli and DeLong’s rounds of 75 tied with Leslie and Wapsi Oaks’ Mike Jacobs (37-38) for 11th overall while Martensen and Sander tied for 15th overall at the tournament with their rounds of 76. Little Bear’s Mike Williams and Brecht also tied for 15th overall with Wapsi Oaks’ Troy Eden (39-37), Plum River’s Scott Swanson (38-38), Bellevue’s Bob Reeg (38-38), Maquoketa’s Mike Rickords (40-36), Bellevue’s Ric Nemmers (38-38) and Maquoketa’s Dave Davis (41-35). |
Never losing the softball faith
By
Daryl Schepanski - Sports Editor |
ANAMOSA — For a summer that started with a serious doubt as to whether or not there would even be an Anamosa softball team in 2007, the end turned out to be one made for Hollywood.
“When you look back on it, it was a pretty amazing season,” said Anamosa softball coach Rick Delagardelle, who with Ron Timp were co-head coaches for the Raiders this summer. “Things were a little shaky early on, and then they settled down and once that happened, everything just fell into place.”
Did they ever!
With a coaching change just a mere game into the 2007 season, (a 14-0 setback at the hands of eventual class 2A state champion Solon) Delagardelle and Timp took over a program much in need of a positive boost and with that confidence restored, the Raiders went on to a 26-16 summer that also saw the Anamosa girls nearly claim a Tri-Rivers Conference softball league championship.
“We have a softball tradition here at Anamosa,” said Delagardelle, who is a big part of that tradition being an assistant coach under Chuck Smith as the two guided Anamosa to back-to-back state tournament appearances in 1995 and 1996, culminating with a trip to the state championship game in 1996 when the No. 2 ranked Raiders finished as the class 2A runner-up to No. 1 ranked Carlisle.
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Never giving up the chase
Anamosa senior Traci Dirks hustles to take an extra base against North Linn this past summer. Dirks and the Raiders had a sensational 2007 campaign going 26-16 and just missed out on a Tri-Rivers Conference championship as well. (Journal-Eureka photo by Daryl Schepanski) |
“Sometimes I wonder if a lot of kids know that. This program has a lot to offer the girls, and we know we can compete on a daily basis with some of the best teams in the state. Softball at this school year-in and year-out has some quality won-loss records, and I don’t see that changing any time soon.”
The Raiders were in the hunt for the Tri-Rivers Conference overall title and league River Division race until the final week of the season eventually finishing 16-6 in their final run in the conference before bolting to the WaMaC next summer.
“We were right there in the mix all summer,” said Delagardelle. “The WaMaC will obviously be a whole different deal next summer, but with the way we played against a lot of teams at that level of competition, I feel we’re going to be just fine when it comes to making that big jump up in competition on a daily basis. The Tri-Rivers has some tough teams, but from top-to-bottom, the WaMaC is one of the toughest around and that will only make us better softball players down the road.”
The Raiders will have to make that jump next summer without the services of star slugger Traci Dirks.
“Traci was our only senior on the team this year, and I couldn’t have asked for a better role model for all the younger players we have on this team,” said Delagardelle. “Her experience at second base and the way she works each out and each at-bat was a model for the rest of the team to follow. We needed that this year as young as we were, and we thank Traci for everything she brought to the Anamosa softball program not only this year, but for the last five years. I’m so happy to have had the opportunity to coach Traci.”
Dirks broke loose as a star slugger for the Anamosa team this past summer hitting .246 with five doubles, three triples, and team-best three home runs. Her solo blast against Bellevue in the bottom of the seventh broke a 1-1 tie and walk-off homer sent Anamosa to a thrilling 2-1 triumph.
While Delagardelle searches for a replacement for Dirks next summer, he does return the bulk of his team in starters Chelsey Bildstein, Mallory Lacy, Maisie Timp, Lindsey Bildstein, Kayla Sanborn, Cammy Dole and Kellie Vaughn as well as key role players in Ryann Pratt, Katie Grassi, Kelly Colehour, Lauren Buck, Helena McNamara and Lauren Herren.
“We need everyone to stay out for this program to continue to thrive,” said Delagardelle. “Top programs are swamped with older kids, and we were extremely young this year but proved we could play. We need those girls at every level to keep playing and keep coming out and by doing that, it will continue to feed the varsity team with quality players and keep this program among the best around.”
Lacy, just a sophomore, proved herself to be one of the best around logging a 20-13 pitching record earning all-conference and all-district honors, fanning a whopping 284 batters in just 210 innings pitched.
Sanborn, a freshman, led the offense hitting .295 while Dole added speed with 20 steals and also led the Raiders with her 31 runs scored.
Anamosa also relied on a steady backstop in Chelsey Bildstein who also earned all-conference and all-district honors.
“We won with pitching and defense this
season,” said Delagardelle. “I’d like to see our offense improve next summer, and if we can do that, we should have some more success.” |
Midland softball takes the offensive
By
Daryl Schepanski - Sports Editor |
WYOMING — Offense proved to be a problem for the Midland softball team in 2006 as the team relied on pitcher Erika Lineburg to keep the Eagles in contests.
This year, second-year coach Patrick Block wanted to see an upgrade in the amount of runs his team scored, and thanks to sensational seasons from Aubrey Walters, Caitlin Bisinger, Amanda Hansen and Shasta Eganhouse, who all hit above .300 this past summer, Midland put plenty of pressure on opposing pitchers in helping the team to a solid 18-18 summer overall and 8-4 mark in Big East Conference play.
“We were a much improved team this season,” said Block as his Eagles raised their team batting average by over 100 points from last summer. “We were in almost every game we played this year and put more runs on the board more than we did last year. We just need to learn to close out those one-run and two-run games and we’ll add to our win total next year too.”
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Ready to run
Midland’s Amanda Hansen gets ready to race off third base during the Eagles’ game hosting Maquoketa this past season. Hansen had a brilliant campaign helping her team to an 18-18 record overall and 8-4 Big East Conference mark by hitting .353 with 30 steals atop the Midland batting order. (Journal-Eureka photo by Daryl Schepanski) |
Block had just two seniors on his entire 2007 roster in Amanda Hansen and Emily Kleinsmith, who both played key roles in the Eagles finishing fifth in the Big East that also saw huge wins over Lisbon, Northeast and North Cedar, just to name a few.
“Amanda was a great leader, center fielder and lead-off hitter for us this season,” said Block. “She always brought her all-around game to the diamond every day, and her speed at the top of the order was another thing this team really relied on.”
Hansen hit .353 this past summer with 30 stolen bases and also scored 25 runs for a Midland team that tallied an impressive 264 runs scored overall.
Kleinsmith anchored second-base all summer long and was another base-running threat for the Eagles who hit .206 with 12 steals.
“Emily was quick and smart on the base paths for us this year,” said Block. “At the end of the year she started slapping and taking more advantage of her speed to beat out hits. She’s always been such a hard worker and a good role model for her younger teammates.”
Walters led the offensive resurgence for the Midland softball team this past summer hitting a team-best .416 with 31 RBIs, 15 runs scored and 47 hits that also included 16 doubles and five triples.
Bisinger also had a phenomenal 2007 campaign hitting .409 with 45 hits, 11 doubles and two triples. She also scored 24 runs and drove home 12 more.
“Aubrey and Caitlin had big years with the bat,” said Block. “Aubrey had the second-most hits in a season in school history, and Caitlin was right behind her with the third-most hits in a season all-time here. That’s getting the job done especially considering the history of this proud program. They’ve had some good ones come through here, and Aubrey and Caitlin are two of the best.”
Eganhouse hit .312 for Midland with nine steals, three doubles and three triples.
“We had a nice balanced attack,” said Block. “We just lacked that big hit at the end of close games.”
Lineburg was her normal sensational self going 15-12 in the pitchers’ circle with 140 strikeouts in 175 innings pitched logging a 2.08 ERA.
“I think Erika put a lot of undo pressure on herself to be perfect this year and that hurt her,” said Block. “There’s still a lot more she can bring to the table. The best is still in front of her and at times, she showed that this year too.”
Midland returns seven starters for another run at a Big East title next summer including five all-conference players (Walters, Bisinger, Lineburg, Katie Leonard and Eganhouse).
“We have what it takes to compete for a conference championship next year,” said Block. “I know we’ll be even better. This season went by so fast and was so much fun, I can’t wait to get back into the action next year and see what happens.” |
A softball runs for the ages in Olin
By
Daryl Schepanski - Sports Editor |
OLIN — Even head coach Karen Ginn, who has lived in Olin for many years and has followed Lion athletics closely, couldn’t remember the last time a Lion softball team had a season as successful as the one her 2007 club put together this past summer.
“It’s been a while since an Olin team put up 19-wins in a softball season, that’s for sure,” said Ginn, who coached the Lions to a 19-11 mark overall this past summer and solid 7-5 mark in Big East Conference action in this her first season guiding the program. “Olin used to be a team no one else worried about and always counted as a win on their schedule. Not anymore. Not only are we competing against just about every team we play, but we’re now beating most of them, too. It’s a great feeling, and these girls have worked very hard to get to this point.”
Balanced hitting, pitching and defense keyed the Lions’ turnaround led by Makenzie Ginn, Kalli Hansen, Danielle Frederick, Kelli Bean and Roxanne Stolte who all topped the .300 mark batting.
Ginn turned in a spectacular summer pitching logging 177 innings in the circle with 131 strikeouts and sparkling 1.42 earned run average while going 17-10 overall.
As impressive as those numbers are, it was the Lions’ ability to tune up their defense that Ginn feels was the key to her team’s success this past summer. |
Doing it all
Olin’s Makenzie Ginn was not only a dominate pitcher logging a 17-10 record overall with 1.42 ERA and 131 strikeouts, but also hit a whopping .477 with 32 RBIs, 14 doubles and three triples. (Journal-Eureka photo by Daryl Schepanski) |
“I thought things really began to turn for us when D.J. was able to step it up behind the plate and began limiting the amount of passed balls we had,” said Ginn. “That and the play of our outfield was also key defensively. Things just started coming together as the season ran deeper and deeper and this young team that we have here really grew up in a hurry.”
At the start of the season, the routine play defensively was a struggle for the Lions to make, but by the end, hits were getting harder and harder to come by for opponents.
“Making those routine plays was huge for not only our ability to stay in games but then eventually win them,” said Ginn. “If we don’t make those plays, we have no chance. But at the end of the season, we were making just about every play, and our confidence was sky-high.”
With the Olin offense producing as well, the Lions won 10 of their final 13 games before their class 1A district semi-final at Lone Tree.
Ginn ripped softballs at an amazing .477 clip with 32 RBIs, 14 doubles and three triples.
Hansen added a .403 batting average with 19 RBIs with Frederick (.324), Bean (.309) and Stolte (.308) all adding offensive punch.
“Our hitting really improved this year too,” said Ginn. “We were striking out more at the start of the year but by the end were putting the ball in play.”
Ginn returns all of her starting lineup for next summer except for senior Jackee Butteris who hit .195 with nine RBIs.
“We’ll miss Jackee’s leadership,” said Ginn. “Even though this was her first year playing softball since the sixth-grade, she came through with some big hits for us this year.”
Ginn, Frederick, Stolte, Hansen, Bean, Emily Brecht, D.J. Francksen, Rachel LeClere, Chelsea Wagner, Haley Schroeder and Desirae Meier are all back as players seeing significant action on the diamond this past season.
“I’m excited for next year,” said Ginn. “We won’t be the surprise team we were this year, but I still expect some big things to happen and for us to make some more noise.” |
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Box 108, 208 W. Main Street, Anamosa, IA 52205
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Anamosa Journal-Eureka / Town Crier 2005
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