Kirt Manion
kmanion@cherryroad.com

After wrapping up the regular season with dominant wins, the Nebraska City softball team boosted its historic record to 26-4 and won a Class B subdistrict championship on its home diamond on Monday, Oct. 7.

After the conclusion of subdistrict play, the Pioneers ended up with the No. 6 seed out of 16 district final teams and were scheduled to host the district final against the No. 11 seed, Gretna East, at 12 p.m. on Friday for a best-of-three series, all played back-to-back, with the winner advancing to play at the state tournament.

This year’s district finals accomplishment rewards years of investment in the program by multiple classes of Pioneer athletes and by dedicated coaches and volunteers at the high school level all the way down through Nebraska City’s youth program.

In 2013, the Pioneers suffered through a winless season. Ten years later, the story has completely flipped.

Successive classes built on the achievements of those before them.

This is the fourth straight season where the Pioneers have posted a winning record.

Nebraska City now boasts a deep roster of multi-talented players with unmatched team spirt and competitive fire.

The Pioneers are not perfect, but their make up allows them to overcome adversity.

“Overall, the kids pick each other up,” said Coach Nick Schmitz. “We don’t play clean. We make mistakes. Somehow, someway, through 30 games, 26 different times, they have figured out how to pick each other up and to score runs when they needed it and make outs when they needed it.

“We’ve won a lot of games with home runs this year,” Coach Schmitz said. “Today, we hit two. A week ago, we hit six in one game by six different players. Today, we manufactured runs.

“A lot of it is our depth. We have a handful of kids that get very limited playing time at the varsity level that would start for almost every team we’ve played. It gives us flexibility. It gives us options if we have a player that’s off that day. The nice thing is they’re all athletic.”

NC 19, A-G 9

Nineteen runs on 18 hits, including a multitude of extra bases, allowed Nebraska City to score a 10-run win.

Offensive leaders were Hanna Marth, single, double and home run; Rylie Beethe, double and home run; Kolbi Davis, two singles and a home run; Halle Nickels, two singles and a home run; Tarryn Godsey, home run; Reese Grotrian, home run; Rylee Stracke, double; Lextyn Harker, three singles; and Ella Gerdes, single. Kolbi Davis pitched six innings, struck out six, walked two and allowed nine runs, five earned, on 12 hits.

NC 13, Auburn 5

Nebraska City racked up 16 hits in the win.

Offensive leaders were Halle Nickels, two singles and a home run; Hanna Marth, single and a home run; Lextyn Harker, single and double; Rylee Stracke, two singles; Kolbi Davis, two singles; Tarryn Godsey, two singles; Riley Beethe, single; Ella Gerdes, single; and Reese Grotrian, single. Lextyn Harker pitched six innings, struck out four, walked one and allowed five runs, two earned, on five hits.

NC 12, Omaha Roncalli-Duchesne 1

A loss to Omaha Roncalli-Duchese ended the season for the Pioneers last year. This season, in first round action of the subdistrict, the Pioneers got their revenge. Eight hits produced 12 runs and an easy win for Nebraska City.

Offensive leaders were Hanna Marth, single and home run; Kolbi Davis, double; Riley Beethe, three singles; and Rylee Stracke, two singles. Lextyn Harker pitched four innings, struck out four, walked one and allowed one unearned run on five hits.

NC 11, Plattsmouth 1

Nebraska City jumped to an early lead and didn’t look back on the way to recording their 26th win of the season and a subdistrict championship.

Offensive leaders were Halle Nickels, single and home run; Rylee Stracke, double; Rylie Beethe, double; Payton Harrah, double; Tarryn Godsey, two singles; Kolbi Davis, single; Lextyn Harker, single; Hanna Marth, single. Kolbi Davis pitched four innings, struck out six, walked none and allowed one unearned run on two hits.

Stats courtesy of Game Changer.