BRODHEAD — Brodhead softball, you’re coming off a WIAA Division 3 state title.
So, coach Steve Krupke, what are you going to do for an encore?
“I wondered why the heck I came back this year,” Krupke said with a chuckle. “But seriously, this is one of the best and most coachable groups I’ve ever had. We won’t be as deep as last year’s team was, but we should have a really nice team.”
That doesn’t mean that, occasionally, Krupke has to crack the whip.
“We were having a sloppy practice last week,” Krupke said. “And I stopped it and told them that last year doesn’t mean anything anymore. We’re going to have a bullseye on our back all year, and if we just show up and go through the motions, we’re going to have a disappointing year. And they responded right away, and I don’t think we had a bad throw the rest of the practice.”
The headliner of the group is junior pitcher Ava Risum, one of Wisconsin’s top prep pitchers who is already committed to NCAA Division I Lindenwood University.
As a sophomore splitting time with Mckenna Young, who is now pitching at the University of South Dakota, Risum allowed just four earned runs in 87 innings for a sparkling 0.33 ERA. She struck out 153 batters.
The bad news for her competition? Krupke said she’s gotten better.
“She’s added about 4 mph to her fastball,” Krupke said. “She’s throwing 62 right now, which is an elite level. She’s still got that great control and can move the ball wherever she wants.”
Brodhead’s pitching lineage doesn’t end with Risum, either, Krupke said.
“We’ve got Sophie Leitzen (a senior who is a Minnesota State University commit) to back Ava up,” Krupke said. “And she pitched really well for us as a freshman. Because we had both Mckenna and Ava, she didn’t really work on it for the past two years, but I told her after last year that there were going to be some innings out there, and she really put in the work. She looks really good out there.”
Leitzen led the Rock Valley last season with 44 hits and will also bat leadoff in what should be a pretty terrific lineup. Jaelyn Hillard will hit second, while Risum will hit third.
“We’re still looking for some protection for Ava in the cleanup spot,” Krupke said. “I’ve got about four or five girls that are in contention for that. There’s not a lot of separation from our fourth through seventh hitter, so we’ve got some depth.”
Jerrica Schwartz, the player who drove in the Division 3 state championship game’s only run last season to win the game for the Cardinals, will be a strong presence behind the plate.
“Jerrica has always caught Ava,” Krupke said. “So that will be a very familiar role for her. We switched her out all of last year when Ava came in. We will miss bats like Mckenna’s and Alexis Kammerer’s, but we feel good overall about it.”
Krupke said the competition in the Rock Valley Conference should be solid.
“Jefferson has a lot of good arms, so they are going to be right there,” Krupke said. “Evansville is a team that I think people are underrating, and Turner is definitely going to have some hitters. And Clinton with (pitcher) Ashley Theisen can beat anyone on a given night because she’s that good.”
While there is inherent pressure in being a defending champion, Krupke said this team should handle it well.
“I was talking with my assistant (BJ Bockhop) the other day, and I was telling him that I wasn’t sure if we even needed to be there,” Krupke said. “We’ve got great leaders in Ava and Sophie. I wouldn’t want to be screwing around in practice with those two. And they just go about their business, doing things the right way.
“You know, it’s tough to be compared to a team that didn’t give up any runs in the playoffs and only allowed 15 all year. But I think this group is going to be ready to handle the challenge and go out there and compete.”
The Cardinals will open their season at 5 p.m. Friday when they host Whitewater in a game that was postponed Tuesday because of rain.
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