Wisconsin High School Sports | Wisconsin Sports Network | WisSports.net

By DENNIS SEMRAU 

Wissports.net 

  

GRAND CHUTE – Madison La Follette made its long wait worthwhile. 

  

Right-hander Tyler Flood tossed six innings of two-hit shutout ball and Jon Dybevik reached base five times to power La Follette to a 12-0 victory over Fort Atkinson in a WIAA Division 1 state baseball quarterfinal at Fox Cities Stadium.

 

"Nothing these kids do surprises me. These kids are ready to play baseball," La Follette coach Nate Verhage said after the Lancers banged out 14 hits, including three doubles and three triples. "This is their time of year. We ve been preparing for this. This is not a surprise that we played well." 

  

La Follette took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Dybevik drew a lead-off walk, stole second and scored on Taylor Carlson's RBI-single to center field. 

 

Fort Atkinson threatened in its half of the first when Sam Hartwick singled off second baseman Tony Grannis' glove, moved to second on a sacrifice and to third on a wild pitch. 

  

But one out later, Mike Knutson hit a one-hopper to third baseman Taylor Carlson, who turned it into a home to third base to second base double play to end the inning. 

  

"We just didn t have any answers today," Fort Atkinson coach Mark Rowley said. "They took care of business. (La Follette) had its defense and pitching and obviously their offense was stellar." 

  

The Lancers grabbed a 4-0 lead on Fort Atkinson with three runs in the third inning. The Lancers got a sacrifice fly from Flood, an RBI single from Griffin Lefeber and an RBI double from Nate Ricci. 

  

Grannis hit a sacrifice fly for the Lancers in the fourth to extend their lead to 5-0. 

  

"We have a saying, ‘It s all part of the story, " Verhage said. "Everything that s happened, during the sectionals we had a rain delay, our bus broke down on the way home, it s all part of the story." 

  

La  Follette took a 6-0 lead in the fifth. Flood led off with a booming triple to right field. Courtesy runner Evan Falch scored when Ricci grounded out to the second baseman. 

  

Meanwhile, Flood just four baserunners, two of which were erased on La Follette double plays. 

  

"That was expected. He s a big-game pitcher," Dybevik said of Flood. "I wasn t surprised." 

  

The Lancers made it 8-0 in the sixth when John Thalacker singled for the second time and scored on a passed ball and Vaughn Brockel reached on an error and scored on a balk. 

  

La Follette made it 9-0 in the seventh when Ricci tripled to center field for his second hit of the game and scored when pinch hitter Kevin Littel bounced out to first. Dybevik singled in another run and Carlson wrapped up the scoring with a two-run double to left field. 

  

"We were anxious all day. We tried to stay loose and not do anything stupid," said Dybevik, who was 2-for-3, including a double, and drew three walks as the Lancers lead-off hitter. "We were just hanging out at the hotel and thinking about keeping our eyes on the prize." 

  

Chaz Mohr relieved Flood and pitched a 1-2-3 seventh for La Follette. 

  

"We were at Fudruckers when they called us to tell us they were taking the tarp off," Verhage said. "We were eating dinner. When we get here the kids say, ‘It s all part of the story and it is. Seven more innings to go, that s what it s all about." 

  

 

Madison La Follette 12, Fort Atkinson 0 

  

Madison La Follette     1 0 3 1 1 2 4 – 12 14 0

Fort Atkinson               0 0 0 0 0 0 0 –   0  2  1 

  

Pitchers (ip-h-er-bb-so) – Flood (W, 6-2-0-2-4, Mohr (1-0-0-0-1). Knutson (L, 5-8-6-4-2), Waller (1-1-0-0-1), Jorsted (1-5-4-0-1). 

  

Leading hitters – M — Dybevik 2x2, Carlson 3x4, Thalacker 3x4, Flood 2x4, Ricci 2x4. 3B: M – Flood, Ricci, Thalacker. 2B: M – Dybevik, Carlson, Ricci.