When the Prescott Cardinals softball team lost back-to-back games against Baldwin-Woodville in late April and early May, it appeared as if their hopes of a second consecutive conference championship were on life support.

Prescott’s bid for back-to-back Middle Border Conference championships made a full recovery, as the Cardinals won their final six league games – including a sweep of the No. 2-ranked Ellsworth Panthers – to claim a share of the conference title with Baldwin-Woodville.

Both Prescott and Baldwin-Woodville posted 13-2 records in Middle Border Conference games while Ellsworth finished runner-up at 11-3. The Cardinals’ 2023 conference championship is the fifth in program history and the first time they’ve won back-to-back titles.

For Prescott head coach Nick Johnson, the 2023 conference title is among the most special he’s had the privilege of winning. Not only because of the strength of this year’s Middle Border Conference but because of the way his girls had to earn it.

“This is big because the conference is very solid this year,” Johnson said. “Our back was against the wall after losing two to Baldwin and we knew we had to win our next six. We grinded those games and found ways to do it. To win a conference championship like that, it’s one of the most memorable I’ve been a part of. It’s a credit to our girls for grinding those games out.”

After dropping a pair to Baldwin-Woodville, the Cardinals swept Osceola and the No. 2-ranked Ellsworth Panthers to put themselves in position to claim a share of the title if they could win the final two conference games against Saint Croix Central.

Because of scheduling conflicts and weather-related postponements earlier this spring, Prescott’s series against Saint Croix Central was a home doubleheader on Friday, May 12. Both programs agreed to make the doubleheader a pair of five-inning games.

Prescott rolled Saint Croix Central in the first game as Johnson’s Cardinals sprayed the ball around the park in a 14-2 drubbing. Prescott senior ace Taylor Graf pitched all five innings and surrendered just three hits and one earned run in the victory.

While the first game against Saint Croix Central was a cakewalk, the second contest was anything but.

Saint Croix Central scored a run in the first inning and two more in the second frame to take a 3-0. Prescott scored six consecutive runs between the third and fourth innings to take a 6-3 lead.

SCC responded with four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, which gave the Panthers a 7-6 advantage. Prescott trailed by one entering the fifth and final frame of a game with a conference championship on the line.

Prescott had two outs and runners on base when one of the Cardinal batters hit a routine flyball to the outfield. Central lost track of the ball and made an error on the attempted catch, which scored a Prescott runner to tie the game 7-7 and force extra innings.

Each team scored a run in the sixth and a scoreless seventh frame sent the contest to the top of the eighth. That’s when Prescott mashed the ball around the park and scored four runs en route to its 12-8 victory and second consecutive conference championship.

“The games we won yesterday and the grit we showed in that second game was impressive,” Johnson said. “We’ve shown a lot of that this year against good teams and we’ve found ways to win close games.”

Prescott’s thrilling victories against Saint Croix Central gave it a share of the Middle Border Conference championship. The other half was decided several days later when Ellsworth and Baldwin-Woodville played in the final league game of the year on Monday, May 15.

Both programs went into the contest with 11-2 records in conference games. Ellsworth jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning when one of the Panthers tagged up from third base on a sacrifice fly.

Baldwin-Woodville responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the opening frame and took a 2-1 lead into the top of the third. After a walk and an infield hit to start the inning, Ellsworth junior Aliza Acker ripped a single to right field that scored junior Aubrey Wittenberg from third to tie it 2-2.

Later in the third, Ellsworth junior Molly Janke blasted a single to center field which gave the Panthers a 3-2 lead. Ellsworth held its one-run advantage through the next three innings and went into the bottom of the seventh needing just three outs to win a conference championship.

Baldwin-Woodville’s two leadoff hitters reached base on an infield hit and an error respectively. Ellsworth junior pitcher Kallie Beissel retired the next two Blackhawk batters, but both runners had advanced to second and third.

Baldwin-Woodville tied the game in the ensuing at-bat when a passed ball scored the runner from third. The following batter, sophomore Hailey Cota, hit a flyball to the outfield. Ellsworth’s defense made an error and dropped the ball, which scored the runner and culminated in the Blackhawks’ walk-off victory.

Ellsworth head coach Tom Diercks spoke about the mistakes in the bottom of the seventh inning that ultimately led to the defeat in a conference championship game.

“One person always feels responsible for something like that but they’re not,” Diercks said. “There are so many other plays throughout the game that happened too. We just made mistakes at the wrong time. We had our opportunities, but it is what it is. We’ve got to move on.”

Despite finishing the season with three consecutive losses, Ellsworth is still a No. 1 seed in the Division 2 playoff bracket. The Panthers will play in a home regional playoff game on Tuesday, May 23.

Prescott will also play in a home regional playoff game that same day. The WIAA has yet to release game times for either of those contests.