I'm Phil Ney with WRCO sports. There are a few softball games slated for the area today.
They include Ithaca at Potosi, Casville, Darlington, Atlanta, and Southwestern at Plantville,
Verokway is at Westby and Austin at Waniwak Center. All softball games slated for today.
There are a lot of games scheduled for this week. We'll see about Tuesday,
whether permitting the Ithaca baseball team is scheduled to make its season debut.
Riverdale set to debut a little bit later on this week with the conference opener for the
Chieftains on Friday against Iowa Grant. The Richland Center baseball team will be out and about
in Missouri this week. I talk recently with head coach Ryan Lemke about the schedule.
Seven games in four days. So to be jam packed, hopefully everyone brought their pitching arms with them.
But we are going to play four varsity games, a game Tuesday Wednesday Thursday and Friday,
and then we're going to have three varsity reserve games that we're going to play down there as well.
So they'll be logged as JV games in our overall record, but they're a great opportunity for our
varsity guys that don't get a ton of playing time to see what they've gotten. You show off and
demonstrate as everyone's earning earnings for the upcoming season.
So then does that count for the varsity record then?
Yeah, for the four and all will, obviously it's not going to be used in the four games will.
It's not going to be used in playoff feeding or anything like that, but it will be on our overall
just because we do count them for WIA and we have to stay under a lot of men of games allowed.
So it's hard to reach that maximum, play games in Wisconsin in spring, but anything's possible.
So we want to make sure we stay under that number with those games in Missouri included.
With that, I think you're going to be maybe better versed and well prepared for the start of
the regular season here in Wisconsin then, aren't you? Yeah, that's one of the goals.
Obviously, goal number one is a great opportunity for our students to play and bond as a team,
but they're also going to be doing some really cool things when they're down there.
We're going to be able to tour the University of Missouri, see their facilities,
go on an official university tour, eat on campus there.
So our guys can see outside in the state boundary of Wisconsin and look at college opportunities
elsewhere. I'm not saying that all of them are going to all of a sudden go to Missouri,
right? We're not going to become a feeder school forum by any means, but just there's
other schools out there outside this great state of Wisconsin and just open their eyes up
the whole world in the United States. The baseball we're going to see down there is going to be
typically better baseball than in the state of Wisconsin. Guys throw a little bit harder, guys
a little bit faster. We're actually playing a team that has a projected picture that's going to be
a first round draft pick out of high school in this MLB draft. So that'll be a fun experience.
I doubt we're going to see. I'm not probably using for conference games, but I have asked their
coach to just throw them in and I guess just saw our guys and see what 96 from a six six guy looks
like. Oh my goodness. You know, when you look at that, great opportunity for especially your seniors
and how many do you have coming back this year, Ryan? Yeah, we've got six seniors in the program
this year. It's our for we're senior heavy for the first time in a long time. We have total
seven of nine starters returning from last season. So we're in a good spot. Obviously losing
our the conference player of the year last year, Lane Miller is a it stinks, right? But we've got
a ton of experience coming back. Guys that know the program, guys that know what I'm going to say
before I say it guys that have been four year starters that we have it all right now. So we're
in a really good spot. That's Bristol Center baseball coach Ryan Lemke. Good luck to the Hornets
on their spring trip. The Brewers were swept over the weekend, giving up 32 in a pair of
losses to the Yankees, including 13 home runs by the Bronx Bombers 15 overall for the series.
Sunday's loss was by a 12 three score. Aaron Savale took the loss. Jake Bowers had a two run
home run and South Freelix singled in a run. The last weekend means Milwaukee has started a season
at 0 and three for the first time in 10 years. Elvin Rodriguez will start the home opener
today for manager Pat Murphy against the Kansas City Royals. Murphy says pitching struggled,
but they knew it would when you come in to the series with the pitching as decimated we were.
I mean with the guys on the we got like I said eight of our top 13 are not here and then your two
starters that you're relying on don't get get very deep in the game. You're going to be really,
really fat. Murphy told the Major League Baseball Network that he is still optimistic for the season.
I think there's just a good atmosphere around the organization right now. I think from the top,
the way Matt Arnold has put together the ball clubs year in and year out in terms of depth
and things like that. I think we're really, you know, authentic. We know who we are a small market
and they go get a lot of guys that have a chance and need an opportunity and things have worked out.
The brewers looking for a chance to get a win today in the home opener. That's a 110 first
pitch time on WRC E FM 107.7 and AM 1450 elsewhere yesterday Tampa Bay six Colorado four St. Louis
92 over Minnesota in the National League San Francisco six Cincinnati three Washington beat
Philadelphia five one Miami three Pittsburgh two Arizona 10 six over the Cubs San Diego five
Atlanta nothing in the American League Toronto three Baltimore one the angels three two over
the white socks Texas three Boston two Cleveland six two over Kansas City Seattle beat the athletics
by final of two one. The box continued to stumble at the end of the NBA season. They were
strong armed out of the Pfizer forum Sunday by Atlanta 145 124. Yana sounds at a Cumpo led Milwaukee
with 31 points and Kevin Porter came off the bench to add another 28. It wasn't enough to keep the
bucks losing streak from reaching four straight games. The team will try to end those struggles at
home coming up Tuesday against Phoenix. Doc Rivers says the transition defense has been the problem.
It's disappointing. It's deflating because it's every possession early on it's only one guy
but that guy's different and so it's just really frustrating. There's something we're doing
though because we were bad beginning a year and then we became a great transition defensive team
and there's something we have to be doing wrong for this to happen. So we have to watch film and
figure it out. That's my job. In college basketball 17 unanswered points in the first half
was enough for Auburn to beat Michigan State 70 to 64 and complete a sweep of number one seeds
advancing to the final four Houston's relentless defense confused and harassed Tennessee and
carried the Cougars into their seventh final four and first since 21 with L.J. Criars scoring 17
in a 69 50 victory in women's basketball Lauren Betts had 17 and seven rebounds despite spending
the entire second quarter on the bench and top overall seed UCLA reached his first final four
of the women's NCAA tournament with a 72 65 victory over LSU. Chloe Kitschord 14 and defending
national champ South Carolina reached the final four of the women's NCAA tournament for a fifth
straight year beating Duke 54 to 50. Improving Wisconsin's football record won't be a snap.
The 25 schedule offers a significant challenge. One service ranks the Badger schedule. The fifth
toughest in the country trailing only Arkansas Florida Mississippi State and Oklahoma. Wisconsin
schedule is also the toughest for any big 10 school coach Luke Fickle and his staff hope to
improve on last seasons five and seven record but the imposing list of opponents will make that
difficult. I'm Philney courtesy of the WRC Os sports boosters.
