The River Falls Wildcats went 2-2 this week, beating the Eau Claire Memorial Old Abes 9-3 on Thursday, losing to the Prescott Cardinals 5-1 on Friday and then splitting their triangular on Saturday with a win against the St. Croix Central Panthers 9-2 and a loss to the Baldwin-Woodville Blackhawks 8-7.

What was supposed to be a five-game slate for the Wildcats turned into four as the weather didn’t cooperate for Tuesday’s road game against Eau Claire Memorial. However, River Falls returned home to host what became their sole Big Rivers Conference game on Thursday against the Abes, and they made quick work of it.

After battling control in the first inning with multiple walks and wild pitches as well as three singles that combined to allow two runners to cross, starting pitcher Audra Adermann settled in to pitch a complete game.

Lily Burke got one of the two runs back in the bottom of the first with a solo shot to make it 2-1, but the real damage came when the Wildcats put up four runs in the fourth and two each in the fifth and sixth innings.

That big four-run fourth started with Jordan Schwantz reaching on an error, an Alexis Ralston single and a Jorgia Bengtson RBI. Morgan Kivel then walked, and Ava Larsen doubled to score Ralston and Bengtson, advancing Kivel to third in the process. S. Kivel got the sacrifice, put the ball in the air to center field to bring the score to 5-2 in favor of the home team.

The bats continued to work in the following two innings as the Wildcats blew the game wide open and took home a 9-3 victory.

Bengtson had a great day, going 2-4 with a run scored, a stolen base and four RBIs. Larsen also had a multi-hit performance, going 2-3 with a double and two RBIs. Finally, Ralston also had a good showing, going 1-1 with two walks, two runs scored and a stolen base.

Adermann’s final line, the first inning notwithstanding, was seven innings, two earned runs on seven hits and four walks while striking out six.

After just their second conference win of the season, River Falls now sits at 2-9 in the Big Rivers and 8-13 overall. On deck for the Wildcats as they enter their final week of Big Rivers play is a pair of conference games against Chippewa Falls, first on Tuesday at home and then away on Thursday. Both games begin at 5 p.m.

Spring Valley

The Spring Valley Cardinals lost three games this week, first to the Glenwood City Hilltoppers 14-9 on Monday, then to the Durand-Arkansaw Panthers 11-1 on Thursday and finally to the Alma-Pepin Eagles on Saturday 10-0.

Even though they were all losses, the Cardinals’ first game against the Hilltoppers was a rollercoaster ride.

After getting down 3-0 early, it seemed like the game was getting away from Spring Valley when it became 6-0 in favor of Glenwood City after 3 ½ innings of play. The Cardinals didn’t quit, and they quickly put up three in the bottom of the frame and added on six more in the fifth to take a 9-6 lead.

Unfortunately, the Hilltoppers put up five of their own in the top of the sixth and three more in the seventh to win 14-9.

With nine runs scored, it’s easy to surmise that the Cardinals’ hitters had a good day at the plate. Pride Beyer led the way, going 3-4 with two doubles, two runs scored and two RBIs. Olivia Schlegel also had a nice day, going 2-4 from the leadoff spot with a double, a run scored and an RBI, and Reese Vivoda rounded out the multi-hit performances by Spring Valley, finishing 2-4 with a run, an RBI and a stolen base.

With the two conference losses this week, the Cardinals finish their Dunn-St. Croix season with a 2-11 record and 4-13 overall. Next up for Spring Valley is the first round of the postseason when they travel to Glenwood City for the regional round of play on Thursday at 5 p.m.

Elmwood-Plum City

The Elmwood-Plum City Wolves lost two games this week, first against Mondovi on Monday 17-0 and then on Thursday to Colfax 17-2.

It’s been a tough season for the Wolves this year, and this pair of losses emphasizes their struggles. They couldn’t seem to get the bats going in either game, and although they will show flashes of excellence, going stretches of time with very good play and by putting together several clean innings in a row, there were blow up innings in both that pushed the games out of reach.

In game one this came on the back of a 12-run third inning and a four-run fourth; besides that, the Wolves mostly blanked Mondovi. In game two, they allowed four, six, three and four runs in the opening four innings, but shut them out over the final three.

With these losses, the Wolves end their Dunn-St. Croix Conference season with a 1-12 record going 1-13 overall. They still have one non-conference game to go when they host Cochrane-Fountain City on Tuesday before beginning the postseason by hosting the regional round of play on Thursday. Both these games start at 5 p.m.