Posted: 4/25/07
Kemen strikes out 17 in loss to Eagles
 Janet Kemen, left, winds up for a pitch while second baseman Amy Carlson crouches in a defensive stance, during a game against East Central April 19. |
By Steve Morris
Rush City senior pitcher Janet Kemen brought her best game to the table in the Tigers battle with East Central April 19 at home.
In all, Kemen retired 17 Eagle batters. However, her skill alone wasn't enough as the Tigers dropped the game by a score of 6-2. It was Rush City's second Great River Conference loss of the year.
Head coach Kim Erdman said striking out 17 batters at the varsity level is almost unheard of.
Getting two hits a piece for the Tigers were juniors Amy Carlson and Brittany Scheffer. Kemen and Carlson scored the two Tiger runs.
"We will need to score more than one or two runs in our game -- so our bats need to start heating up," Erdman said.
On April 20, the Tigers hosted Grantsburg, the defending state champs from Wisconsin. Rush City held their own, holding Grantsburg to just three runs. Erdman said his team played well, despite the numbers on the scoreboard.
"We knew we had to play our best to stay in the game and we did," he said.
Collecting hits for the Tigers were Bethany Peters, Charlene Hebert and Tomi Schellbach.
Against the Braham Bombers, the Tigers lost 4-1 April 17. Kemen again was on the mound and had a solid outing, striking out nine along the way. While on the mound, Kemen used a mixture of pitches including a change-up and knuckle ball to keep the Bombers guessing.
The Tigers had five hits on the game, with Carlson scoring their only run.
"Offensively, we chased too many pitches," Erdman said. "We need to have better timing at the plate."
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