Underclassmen will lead Lady Mounders on ball diamond
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2021 ELK MOUND SOFTBALL TEAM — Front row (L to R): McKenzie Woodard, Hannah Larson, Morgyn Hallum, Kallee Rhude, Issie Hollister and McKenna Diermeier. Middle row (L to R): Kylee Jenson, Chloe Dummer, Kira Conlin, Stella Rhude, and Jazmyn Shafer. Back row (L to R): Payton Burcaw, Lauren Garnett, and Ella Audorff. —photo submitted
Marlys Kruger
Sports Correspondent
ELK MOUND — With nary a senior on the team this year, Elk Mound varsity softball coach McKayla Maenner will look for her underclassmen to step up and lead the Mounders this season.
With no softball last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mounders lost several key players from the 2019 season including Clare Hallum, Sophie Cedarblade, Hailey Blaskowski, and Orianna Horel who helped them finish 18-5 for the season.
Six juniors, three sophomores and eight freshmen make up the roster for Maenner who begins her second actual year of coaching the Mounders.
A pair of juniors including Second Team All Dunn- St. Croix Conference player McKenna Diermeier and Honorable Mention All Conference Issie Hollister return with varsity experience.
Sophomore Lauren Garnett comes in with a lot of experience with the game and will have a dominant impact both defensively and offensively, according to Maenner. Another sophomore, Stella Rhude, has a lot of raw talent and is a natural athlete who will be used wherever she is needed.
Freshman Kylee Jenson also has a lot of raw talent and will be utilized somewhere on the field and another freshman Kira Conlin, comes to the team with a lot of catching experience and should be a great addition. She will have big shoes to fill at that position after Blaskowski played there for several years.
“We are fortunate to have five well experienced and skilled juniors to lead our team this year,” Maenner said.
“Additionally, a good handful of our newcomers have played a lot of travel ball or been a part of our youth program for many years. With a season off and being fairly young, this year will truly be a teaching and building year. Our freshmen and sophomores come with a lot of different levels of knowledge and skill for the game,” she added.
Goals for her team include getting them back on the field to enjoy the season and to have them appreciate and love the game again. Statistically, Maenner has expectations for the goals and hopes they can meet them. Being competitive each night and working hard will be a successful season.
Maenner is not sure which teams will be the most competitive in the Dunn-St. Croix Conference this year due to the year off for everyone.
“We are familiar with who each team has from before but with two new grades a part of each team this season it’s hard to predict what the competition will be like,” she said.
“We’ll focus on ourselves and try to do the best we can,” she concluded.
The Lady Mounders open up conference and season play next Tuesday, April 27 with a trip to rival Colfax. They then travel to Mondovi on Thursday, April 19 before welcoming Stanley-Boyd the next day (April 30) for their home opener.
2021 Roster
Juniors: McKenna Diermeier, Issie Hollister, Hannah Larson, Kallee Rhude, Morgyn Hallum, and McKenzie Woodard.
Sophomores: Lauren Garnett, Payton Burcaw, and Stella Rhude.
Freshmen: Ella Audorff, Chloe Dummer, Kylee Jenson, Kira Conlin, Natalynn Decambaliza, Jazmyn Shafer, Ceci Soto, and Hallee West.