They pitched. They hit. They ran the bases. They played defense. They won the Northern Badger Conference, and thus cleaned up when it came to the league’s postseason awards in 2013.
The Portage High School prep softball team had quite the season, and as expected for a team that finished atop the conference standings with a 10-2 record, the Warriors had five players on the 12-player first-team, all-conference list, and two additional players earn second-team, all-conference honors this season.
Headlining Portage’s first-team selections was the junior pitcher-and-catcher duo of Jenalee Wilson and Nellie Hilgendorf. They were joined on the first-team list by senior infielders Kaitlin Schultz and Allison Hill, as well as senior utility player Amanda Elsing.
Earning second-team honors were junior infielder Morgan Mills and junior outfielder Jess Parrott.
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The first-team honors for Wilson were a first for her, after making the second team in each of her first two years. This season in the circle, Wilson was 8-2 in conference games with a 1.32 earned run average. She finished with 53 strikeouts and just nine walks in 69 innings of work.
“There was a couple of big improvements, and one of them was definitely cutting down on the walks,” Portage head coach Dave Mills said of Wilson. “With the change in her form, and using her lower body more, she had much more stamina this year than she did last year.”
Wilson’s battery mate, Hilgendorf, who is also her first cousin, was a first-team catcher for the second straight season. Hilgendorf batted .286 in conference games, but had a .328 batting average in all games this spring. Her nine stolen bases were easily the most among the catchers in the Badger North. And while Hilgendorf was good on offense, it was the way she handled herself behind the plate that really stood out.
“Her defensive ability helped get her selected too. She was, in my mind, the best catcher in throwing out base runners this year,” Mills said. “She was much better in passed balls this year than she was last year. She just generally improved.”
For the third straight year, Schultz was a first-team honoree in the Badger North, only this time it comes as an infielder. In the previous two seasons, Schultz played in the outfield, but made the move to second base for her senior season, where she shined. Playing a new position, Schultz had just two errors in 57 chances in conference games.
Schultz was also a major weapon on offense, where she batted .389 in the conference and had a conference-leading 17 stolen bases.
“Her speed was something a lot of teams don’t have,” Mills said. “Her on-base percentage was over .500, so every other time she’s getting on base, and she’s stealing a base almost every other time she gets on. That puts you in scoring position without having to waste any more outs.”
Hill lands on the league’s first-team list for a second straight year, after earning second-team honors as a sophomore in 2011. Playing at the demanding shortstop position, Hill had just three errors in conference games. At the plate, she batted .258 in conference games, and .353 overall. And while those are good numbers, it’s in other areas that Hill made perhaps her biggest contributions.
“It’s a confidence that she has in herself, and she gets her teammates to believe in themselves. It’s leadership qualities that she has that go much deeper than her ability to play,” Mills said of Hill. “You wish all you kids had that trait.”
Elsing earns first-team honors for the first time in her career, after earning honorable mention last season. This year, Elsing played mostly at first base, but also spent time at third base and right field. She batted .317 in conference games, to go along with two doubles, two home runs and 10 RBI.
“Obviously she was the biggest power threat in the conference,” Mills said of Elsing. “Whenever possible other teams were pitching around her.”
For Morgan Mills, she picks up second-team honors after getting honorable mention as a sophomore last year. She finished with a .290 batting average in conference, and .326 overall. Those numbers are impressive, when you consider she was 0 for 14 to the start the season at the plate.
“After she got her first hit, she hit about .420 something,” coach Mills said.
Parrott earns second-team honors for the first time in her career. She replaced Schultz in center field and didn’t have an error. She also hit .297 in conference games and .345 overall to go along with a triple, a home run and a team-leading 11 RBI.
“Her ability to play center field at a high level allowed us to move Kaitlin into the infield,” Mills said.
ALL-NORTHERN BADGER CONFERENCE SOFTBALL
First team: Pitchers — *Jesse Carignan, Sr, Baraboo; Katie Klein, Jr, DeForest; Jenalee Wilson, Jr, Portage; Allie Taylor, Sr, Waunakee. Catchers — Nellie Hilgendorf, Jr, Portage; Emma Fullenkamp, So, Waunakee. Infielders — Shelby Gerken, Sr, Baraboo; Kaitlin Schultz, Sr, Portage; Allison Hill, Sr, Portage. Outfielders — Kayla Goth, Jr, DeForest; Ally Pulvermacher, Sr, Waunakee. DH/Utility — Amanda Elsing, Sr, Portage.
*unanimous selection
Second team: Catchers — Katherine VanderSchaaf, So, Baraboo; Morgann Harbort, Fr, DeForest. Infielders — Amy Schlender, Jr, Baraboo; Amy Loose, Sr, DeForest; Morgan Mills, Jr, Portage; Courtney Mefford, Sr, Sauk Prairie; Val Farber, So, Waunakee. Outfielders — Lydia Schuchardt, Jr, DeForest; Jess Parrott, Jr, Portage; Carley Bill, Sr, Reedsburg.
Honorable mention: Baraboo — Kaitlin Steive, Jr; Kelsey Digman, Sr. DeForest — Kortni Kohl, Jr; Lauren Olson, Fr. Mount Horeb — Brienna Halverson, Sr; Carly Payne, Sr; Lindsey Bollig, So. Reedsburg — Anna James, So. Sauk Prairie — Anna Lenerz, Sr. Waunakee — Molly Lechelt, So.