Warriors’ offense too much for Rockets

Ozaukee High School’s softball team jumped out to a 10-0 by the fourth inning and cruised to a 21-8 win at Cedar Grove-Belgium last Friday.

The game between two teams trying to develop their programs — the Rockets have been down for years and the Warriors didn’t have a team the past two seasons — featured some typical mistakes young squads make, including 13 combined errors and wild pitches, passed balls and drops.

But the enthusiasm never waned on either side.

It was the Warriors’ second victory of the season.

“In the past two years haven’t had a team. It feels really good to beat a conference team,” Kenedeigh Harness said.

“We have a lot of good girls. Obviously, it was a little rough in the start, but we definitely have improved since the beginning of the season.”

Ozaukee’s Chloe Majeski pitched the bulk of the game. After she was pulled, she returned to the circle to finish the contest when her reliever struggled.

She liked pitching with an early lead.

“It’s really great. I can count on my team to back me up. We just have great confidence,” she said.

The team, she said, is developing, with just a handful of varsity games on the schedule. The rest are either against junior varsity or varsity reserve squads.

“Things are coming along great. The team’s amazing. They’re all super sweet. It can only go up from here,” Majeski said.

The Rockets bounced back with an eight-run inning in the fourth to make it 10-8.

But the Warriors added two runs in the fifth, three in the sixth and six in the seventh to pull away, and the Rockets didn’t score again.

“We fought really hard that one inning. I was proud of them. We kept talking in the dugout. We kept our energy high,” Cedar Grove-Belgium coach Drew Thimmig said.

Jorjie Mejchar is the Rockets’ top pitcher, returning from last season. Lily Groth is the catcher. The two recently started working together.

“We have a few pitchers ready to go. She’s pitched a lot of complete games. She’s awesome,” Thimmig said.

Abbi Heinen is in her first year of softball at third base.

All-conference player London Rulli broke her pinky and is out for the season, so Addyson Schreurs is playing shortstop.

Gracee Soerens is at second base.

Emmy Rulli is at first base.

Senior Allyson Newmann is in left field, bringing experience.

Ana Daane is in center.

“She’s great in center. She’s filled in at shortstop too in a pinch,” Thimmig said.

Madelyn Hopeman is in left field.

“As a whole, we’re figuring things out,” Thimmig said.