GROVE CITY — The Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City softball team has some talent and certainly can hit the ball.
Preventing others from scoring and shoring up the pitching and defense will be the Falcons’ main challenges in 2021.
ACGC is off to an 0-4 start, with losses to Paynesville (18-3), Eden Valley-Watkins (21-6) and Royalton (10-2 and 14-1).
Coach Bill Nelson II’s squad has gotten its share of hits, led by ninth-grader Haley Wilner, eighth-grader Macy Elton, ninth-grader Ally Giese, ninth-grader Taylor Hoekstra, sophomore Abbie Kragenbring, Hailey Burroughs, ninth-grader Kady Martin, Giselle Grahn and Kendall Martin.
Yes, the Falcons are young.
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ACGC was 11-8 in 2019.
This season, all four losses have been to Central Minnesota Conference foes. It’s a new conference for the Falcons, who joined the CMC for the 2020-21 school year. Also in the league are Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa, Holdingford, Kimball and Maple Lake. The Irish are perennial favorites who have been to state five times since 2008, winning a state title in 2018 and finishing second in ‘08, ‘09, ‘15 and ‘17.
The Falcons’ Section 3A has 15 teams, including Dassel-Cokato, Jackson County Central, Litchfield, Luverne, Minneota/Canby, Minnewaska, Montevideo, Morris/Chokio-Alberta, New London-Spicer, Pipestone, Redwood Valley, St. James, Tracy-Milroy-Balaton and Windom.
