Michalsky raises playoff bar for baseball Chiefs
Alex Yacko (left) a sophomore pitcher and junior catcher Kyle Stowers congratulate each other following the final pitch of their 9-2 win over Adams-Friendship at Wisconsin Dells high School Friday afternoon. The win advanced the Chiefs into the WIAA Division 2 Regional semi-finals at Portage yesterday afternoon. A win there would advance the Chiefs to the Regional championship game scheduled for today.
By Jim den Hollander
A quick offensive start all but clinched a second round berth for the Wisconsin Dells High School varsity baseball team by the end of the second inning. Indeed the eight runs scored was more than enough to secure a 9-2 against Adams-Friendship in its WIAA Division 2 playoff opening win but head coach Mike Michalsky wasn't impressed with how comfortable his team got with the lead. After all, the Chiefs have surrendered big innings as many times as they have scored them this season and theoretically, no lead is safe in a game that doesn't use a clock. So, despite advancing to the WIAA Division 2 Regional semi-finals and sporting its longest winning streak of the season - a five gamer, the Chiefs paid a price for some sloppy lackadaisical play immediately after the game. After shaking hands, the Chiefs took the field immediately for an extended 15-minute practice that saw them running and shagging fly balls. However, while Michalsky made it clear, he wasn't circling this one as the team's best effort of the season, he was no doubt pleased to be moving on to the next round of the post season. "They didn't totally fall apart. We just made some really bad defensive plays because we got lax in the middle innings once we got the big lead," said the coach afterward. "They need to know that's not acceptable." Michalsky understands his team is mostly young (just a couple of seniors playing in the post season) which could be a factor in the late inning layoff. He also is aware that in most cases, the unforced errors will hurt a lot worse. "That was probably part of it tonight. They got out to a big lead and they kind of put it on cruise control. Then, instead of concentrating on every pitch it was here and there a little bit. We're not at a point where we're so good that we can just put it on cruise control." Josh Ingersol went to the mound again for the locals and collected the win with six innings for two-hit ball, striking out seven, including the first two batters he faced in a 1-2-3 first inning. The Chiefs meanwhile went to work immediately, Alex Yacko reaching on an error to lead off the Chiefs' offense and ultimately scoring the first of four first inning runs. Another four in the second had the Chiefs within a couple of runs of ending this one early, but after seven hits through the first two frames, the Chiefs suddenly went hitless the rest of the way. Thankfully, Ingersol was in control for the most part and pitched himself out of trouble when he wasn't. Southpaw Alex Yacko came on in relief in the final inning, getting the first two on ground balls before stranding a walked batter at first when the final out was made on another ground out. Along with the defensive shortcomings, some poor base running decisions and a general lack of hustle on some plays played a part in the Chiefs' offensive output being drastically slowed. Adams scored both of its runs in the third inning and stranded runners at second and third in the same frame. The Chiefs managed to get through the final four innings without any more damage although the Devils did have base runners in all four frames. With 14 wins in 25 games played this season, the Chiefs have had a number of different players step up as the offensive heros. In this game, the honor went to Ryan Theiler, who celebrated a promotion from number nine to number seven in the batting order with a three run double in the first and a 2-for-3 day at the plate. Clearly, Theiler was seeing the ball well. "I don't know, it was just a pretty good speed for me. Not too slow, not too fast, just perfect speed for me to hit it," said Theiler afterward adding for the most part he was able to put the ball where he wanted to with the bat. The Chiefs moved on yesterday (after press time) to play Portage, a team that 10-run ruled them on May 11 right at WDHS and also the same team that knocked them out of the post season a year ago. Michalsky said his team which entered the Adams-Friendship game riding its second four-game winning streak of the season is playing its best ball at the right time. "We're hitting the ball as well as we have all season. We can do some things pitching-wise a little better than we did tonight - our walks have to be down. We have to get our off speed pitches over obviously, we have to play better defense. That is what it will take," said Michalsky. Theiler didn't seem to have a problem with the extra work tacked on at the end and knew his team would need a better effort against Portage, a team that mercy-ruled the Chiefs right at Kaminski Park May 11 and also the team that ended their post season a year ago. "(Portage is) well put together. They can hit the ball pretty good and their fielding is good, so we just have to hit the ball against them." Stowers finds a home Kyle Stowers, a utility player with the Chiefs has a good shot at being the team's starting catcher next year. His education started a little early though with senior Matt Snyder ineligible for the rest of the year. "Being a utility player, I played a lot of places," said Stowers adding, "I used to be a catcher back in middle school and I'm going to be one next year. (It is an) unfortunate turn of events, but it's just a head start towards next year." Stowers said he and the other players knew it would take a better effort to get by Portage. "We relaxed too much. We stopped hustling. Once you stop hustling you see those bloop singles start falling in and you give the other team some hope when they really shouldn't have any." To beat Portage, the rules are clear, said Stowers. "Be disciplined at the plate and be solid defensively," said the junior catcher. New Playoff tradition? It seemed several players had newly shaved locks in time for the post season, but Matt Lagoda. Jalen Buss. Marcus Weldy and Stowers stood out in particular with matching Mohawk-style haircuts. "That was something the kids did. It was pretty cool. They did it today. Coach Buss shaved them up for the game," said Michalsky. Coach Buss also joined the players with the Mohawk style while Jake Williams shaved his own head and Buss said Ryan Theiler consented to some minor alterations, although not quite as drastic as the rest. "I tried to get coach Michalsky to get one to, but he wasn't having it," said Buss. A few more victories and the local nine could see their hairstyles become even more visible in town. If the Chiefs won its semi-final game yesterday it was scheduled to advance to the Regional final today. WISCONSIN DELLS 9, ADAMS-FRIENDSHIP 2 Wisconsin Dells 440 100 0 — 9 7 2 Adams-Friendship Pitchers