North Platte Bulldogs – Page 16 – North Platte Post Archive

North Platte Bulldogs Softball Team to Host 2014 Invite Saturday

Posted on September 15, 2014

The North Platte Bulldogs softball team will be hosting the 2014 North Platte High School Softball Classic on Saturday.

The Lady Dawgs placed second at their home tournament last season. North Platte beat Kearney 5-1, followed by a win over Gering 7-6, before losing to Lincoln North Star 10-6 in the championship game.

There will be eight teams competing in the tournament that will be held at the Dowhower Softball Complex in North Platte. North Platte will once again begin the tournament by playing Kearney. The Bulldogs are currently 8-7 on the season while the Bearcats are 6-9. The other teams at the tournament are Ralston (9-1), Alliance (0-13), Scottsbluff (8-8), Chadron (3-6), Gering (14-4), and Lexington (4-11).

North Platte has played Lexington and Gering already this season and went 2-1. The Lady Dawgs beat Lexington in a doubleheader, 13-1 and 13-5, but lost to Gering at the McCook Invite, 7-4.

The bracket for the tournament can be seen by clicking on the link below and an updated North Platte Bulldogs scheduled can be seen on the North Platte Bulldogs Sports Zone page.

NPHS 2014 Softball Invite Bracket

The Lady Dawgs Improve to 5-0 with Win over GI Northwest

Posted on September 11, 2014September 11, 2014

The North Platte Lady Bulldogs earned a 3-1 win over Grand Island Northwest Thursday night in Grand Island.

The No. 6 Lady Dawgs wasted no time jumping out on top of the Lady Vikings by taking set one with a 25-20 win. Three big hitters stepped up to lead North Platte in the set. Senior Jessy Hunt and juniors Olivia Nicholson and Allison Kuenle each had three kills. Hunt finished the match with eight kills and a number of big blocks to help lead North Platte in the win. She said she enjoyed the hostile crowd at GI Northwest.

“I was feeding off the crowd,” Hunt said. “It was just loud and when it’s loud I just get all pumped up.”

Coach Laura Miller liked what she saw out of one of the team’s senior leaders.

“She had some blocks that were more like spikes than blocks so we were like ‘whoa’ that was great for momentum for us,” Miller said. “She’s driven and wants to set that block record this year.”

In set number two GI Northwest, the fourth-ranked team in Class B, jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead before the Lady Dawgs came storming back and went on an 11-1 run to go up 12-6. But the Lady Vikings went on a run of their own and took a 24-23 lead before North Platte regained the lead and took the set 27-25. Nicholson and Kuenle once again led the way with four kills each.

The third set North Platte’s communication dropped and GI Northwest took advantage of it as they came up with some big blocks and won 25-18 to force a fourth set. Nicholson led the way in the third set with five kills.

The Dawgs jumped on top in the fourth set and dominated from then on out with a decisive 25-17 win. Nicholson once again stepped up big with six kills in the fourth set. Senior Kaitlynn Harvey followed with four kills to help ensure the victory. Miller said the team this year has the desire to get the job done.

“They are so driven,” she said. “My job is pretty easy right now, I’m kind of enjoying this. They tend to take care of business.”

Hunt said the team has focused on finishing matches and sets this season.

“We made it a goal to finish,” she said. “We’re also a lot closer this year. We were close last year but we are even more this year. We play for each other and really emphasize playing as a team.”

North Platte, which moved up to No. 6 in the rankings this week, has now beaten four ranked opponents in a row in its 5-0 start. The streak started with Class C1 No. 3 Ogallala, followed by then No. 8 Lincoln North Star, followed by then No. 4 Lincoln Southwest, before Thursday night’s win over Class B No. 4 Grand Island Northwest.

Hunt said that the team’s hustle has been a key to the fast start.

“We just work hard and always want to get better,” Hunt said. “Every practice we try to push ourselves.”

The Lady Bulldogs will next play at home Saturday as they host the Bulldog Triangular. The Bulldogs from both Gering and Alliance will make the trip from the Panhandle to compete. North Platte plays Gering at 12 noon to begin the Tri then the Dawgs will finish the day with a 2:00 pm match against Alliance.

Miller said she needs to make sure her team doesn’t over look Gering and Alliance after playing so many ranked teams leading up to the Bulldog Triangular.

“That emotional let down is the big deal,” Miller said. “We’re going to go after it and try to do our game plan and play our game to avoid that.”

Team	1	2	3	4	Final
North Platte	25	27	18	25	3
GI Northwest	20	25	25	17	1

Lady Bulldogs Pick Up Pair of Wins over Ranked Teams

Posted on September 6, 2014September 7, 2014

The North Platte Lady Bulldogs volleyball team rose early Saturday morning and made the trip to Lincoln Southwest High School and came away with two upset victories over Lincoln North Star and Lincoln Southwest.

The ninth-ranked Lady Dawgs drew No. 8 North Star in the first match of the quad. North Platte jumped out to an early lead against the Navigators. Led by senior Kaitlynn Harvey’s five first-set kills North Platte won the first set 25-19. Star juniors Olivia Nicholson and Allison Kuenle took over in the second set leading the Lady Dawgs to a 25-16 win and taking the best-of-three match in straight sets. Nicholson finished with eight kills and four aces. Kuenle had seven kills, including six in the second set. She also added two aces while serving.

North Star ended North Platte’s season in 2013 with a 3-1 win in the district finals. Harvey enjoyed getting a little revenge on the Navigators.

“It was awesome,” Harvey said.

Coach Laura Miller echoed those statements.

“I was kind of like that pit [of losing last year] is gone,” Miller said. “That was pretty awesome.”

North Platte played No. 4 Lincoln Southwest in the second match of the day. The Lady Dawgs once again took the first set with a 25-22 win over the Silver Hawks. Nicholson and Kuenle led the way once again with seven kills each in the set. North Platte jumped out to a three point lead in the second set, but Lincoln Southwest came storming back and won the set 25-18. The Dawgs very easily could have hung their heads and accepted a loss to the fourth-ranked team, but instead they displayed great confidence and didn’t back down as they dominated the third set 25-16 for the 2-1 match win. Miller said there is a reason for the resilience her team showed.

“They’ve all gained a lot of confidence from last season,” Miller said. “I think we just started off at a higher level [this year] than we normally do so our confidence level is definitely there and that’s exciting.”

Nicholson finished the match with 22 kills, Kuenle followed with 13 kills, including the exclamation point, a resounding blast from the left side to finish it. Junior setter Alex Neff had three aces in the match and helped lead a stout North Platte defense.

North Platte showed great hustle in both matches and gave everything they had on every ball. Harvey said that’s a great way to play.

“It was really fun today,” she said. “I’m really glad we played well.”

Miller said the hustle displayed by North Platte was key to getting the two wins.

“With that kind of effort we kind of wear the other team down a little bit,” she said. “They’re kind of like ‘what do we got to do to get the ball on the ground’ and they finally just give up or make a mistake.”

With the two wins North Platte improves to 4-0 on the season, including wins over three ranked teams, No. 8 Lincoln North Star, No. 4 Lincoln Southwest and C1 No. 3 Ogallala. Miller said the other teams in the state have noticed the Bulldogs.

“We will definitely have a target on our back,” Miller said. “I’m going to welcome that and I think the kids will too.”

The Lady Bulldogs next game is on Thursday, September 11 at Grand Island Northwest. The Vikings are ranked fourth in Class B. First serve of the varsity match is scheduled for 7:00 PM and the game can be heard on ESPN Radio 1410 with the pregame show starting at approximately 6:45.

Special Teams Helps Lead North Platte to Win over Lincoln High

Posted on September 6, 2014

The North Platte Bulldogs punt team came up with a fumble recovery on the Lincoln High 29-yard line with just over three minutes left, leading to the game-winning touchdown in the Dawgs 28-21 win.

North Platte jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on its opening drive when senior quarterback Shane Mauch carried the ball into the endzone from inside the 1-yard line. Mauch would add two more 1-yard touchdown runs in the game to lead North Platte.

Lincoln High tied the game on its ensuing drive highlighted by a 56-yard run from Marcus Haynes. The drive was capped off by a two yard touchdown run by Tyren Baker.

The second quarter began with North Platte fumbling the kick return and giving the Links the ball at the NP 18-yard line. The North Platte defense stepped up and got a big stop on third down by tackling Haynes four yards in the backfield. Dawgs junior linebacker Ricky Sandoval led the charge. Lincoln High was forced to kick a field goal and Jose Perez-Blanco was true on the 33-yard attempt to give the Links a 10-7 lead.

North Platte’s next drive stalled near midfield and they were forced to punt. The Dawgs defense forced a Lincoln High three-and-out and North Platte took over at their own 49-yard line. The Dawgs then took the lead on the second one-yard touchdown run from Mauch, 14-10. North Platte took the four-point lead into halftime.

The third quarter began with North Platte being forced to punt and Mauch pinned the Links deep as they ball was touched down at the Lincoln High 3-yard line. The Links though were undeterred as they drove down the field and Perez-Blanco kicked a 36-yard field goal to make it 14-13.

North Platte turned the ball over on downs as the fourth quarter started, but Lincoln gave it back quickly with a fumble on the third play of its drive. The Dawgs took over at the Lincoln High 33-yard line and a six-play drive was capped by the third one-yard Mauch touchdown run.

Lincoln was given a gift on its next drive. The North Platte defense had the Links pinned deep but a roughing-the-kicker penalty on fourth-and-19 gave Lincoln the automatic first down. Three plays later quarterback Anthony Evans connected with Jamie Davis for a 61-yard touchdown pass. The Links went for two and running back Terry Jones converted it for Lincoln to tie the game at 21 with just under five minutes to go.

The Dawgs were forced to punt on their ensuing drive, but the Links returned the favor with a roughing-the-kicker penalty and also as the ball hit the ground it hit a Lincoln player and North Platte recovered it. The Dawgs declined the penalty and took over with 3:06 left at the Lincoln High 29-yard line. Five plays later Mauch threw a bullet that threaded the needle to junior wide receiver Grant Pavelka for a 14-yard touchdown pass to give North Platte the 28-21 lead with 53 seconds left.

The Dawgs defense held Lincoln High for the final minute and North Platte improved to 2-0 on the season.

North Platte finished with 239 yards of total offense and gave up 302 yards to Lincoln High. The Links were able to pound the ball up the middle in the first half and had 116 yards rushing after the first two quarters. The Dawgs’ defense tightened up and only allowed 55 rushing yards in the second half.

Mauch finished the game 12/19 for 117 yards passing with a touchdown. He also rushed for 81 yards and three touchdowns. Pavelka had five receptions for 50 yards, including the game-winning touchdown.

North Platte’s next game is Friday, September 12 at home against rival Kearney. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 pm at Bauer Field and the game can be heard on ESPN Radio 1410 with the pregame show starting at 6:30 pm.

The Lady Dawgs Softball Team Splits 2 Games in Kearney

Posted on September 5, 2014September 5, 2014

The North Platte Bulldogs softball team went 1-1 in two neutral site games against Hastings and Lincoln East on Thursday.

Kearney hosted the three teams with North Platte playing Hastings and Lincoln East. The Dawgs played Hastings in the first game of the night and lost 9-2. The Lady Tigers jumped on North Platte early by scoring four runs in the top half of the first inning. The Lady Dawgs cut the lead in half by the end of the third inning but still trailed 4-2. Hastings then scored three runs in the fourth inning and its final two runs in the sixth for the 9-2 win.

Senior Jenny Keck led the way at the plate by going 1-3 with a double and an RBI in the loss. Sophomore Willow Chitty was the only player from North Platte with more than one hit as she had two singles and a run scored.

Keck also took the loss inside the circle after giving up nine runs, eight earned, on 14 hits in six innings. She also struck out three batters and didn’t issue a walk. Senior Katie Franzen came in for the final inning for North Platte and gave up one hit but no runs.

The second game of the night for North Platte was a different story offensively as the Dawgs beat Lincoln East 12-10. North Platte once again gave up first inning runs to the Spartans to trail 2-0 going into the bottom half of the inning. The Dawgs responded quickly though by scoring three runs to take a 3-2 lead. North Platte added two more in the second inning and led 5-2. Lincoln East got back on the scoring train in the fourth inning by scoring five runs to take a 7-5 lead, but North Platte again responded by scoring three runs in the fourth to finish the inning with an 8-7 lead. The Dawgs added two more runs in the fifth, followed by three Lincoln East runs in the sixth to once again tie the game at 10 going into the bottom of the sixth inning. North Platte scored the two runs that ultimately made the difference in the bottom of the sixth and held the Spartans scoreless in the seventh for the 12-10 win.

Chitty led the way for North Platte by going 3-4 with two runs batted in. Franzen and Keck each had a double and two RBI in the game. Franzen also scored three runs in the game along with fellow senior Hannah Hays.

Senior Marisa Ramos started the game inside the circle for the Bulldogs and went three and one-third innings, giving up seven runs, five earned, on six hits. She also had one strikeout and gave up on walk. Keck came in for the final three and two-third innings. She gave up three runs, all of them earned, on six hits, while walking two batters and striking out three.

The standout player for Lincoln East was its leadoff hitter Crist. She had three home runs in the game and six RBI.

North Platte is now 6-4 on the season and will next play at the McCook Invite Saturday morning. The Lady Dawgs will play Cozad in the first round at 9:00 am. The bracket for the tournament can be seen below.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
Hastings	4	0	0	3	0	2	0	9	15	1
North Platte	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	2	7	5

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
Lincoln East	2	0	0	5	0	3	0	10	12	8
North Platte	3	2	0	3	2	2	–	12	9	3

The Lady Dawgs Sweep Lexington

Posted on September 3, 2014September 3, 2014

The North Platte Bulldogs softball team made the short trip to Lexington on Tuesday and came home with a pair of wins, 13-1 and 13-5.

The Dawgs wasted no time jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning in game one of the doubleheader. North Platte then added eight more runs in the second inning, highlighted by a grand slam from senior Mikenzi Wiseman. It was Wiseman’s first home run of the season after leading the team last year with six. Lexington scored its lone run in the bottom of the second inning before North Platte added three more runs in the top of the third to take a 13-1 lead. Lexington failed to score in the bottom of the third and the game resulted in a 12-run rule win for North Platte.

Wiseman led the way by going 3-3 at the plate with the grand slam, four RBI and two runs scored. Senior Jenny Keck earned the win inside the circle by pitching two innings and giving up just one run on two hits. Freshman Avery Doucet came in for the final inning and shut down the Minutemaids without allowing a base runner and striking out two batters.

In game two North Platte jumped out to a 4-0 lead and senior pitcher Katie Franzen had a no-hitter through three innings before Lexington got the bats rolling and scored four runs in the fourth inning to tie the game. The Dawgs then scored nine more runs over the next three innings to take a 13-4 lead. The Minutemaids scored their final run in the bottom of the seventh for a final score of 13-5.

Wiseman had another good game at the plate with three hits, including a triple, an RBI and two runs scored, but Keck provided most of the offensive output. She went 4-5 with a double, 5 RBI and two runs scored. Keck also pitched two scoreless innings of relief and had three strikeouts

Franzen went four innings and gave up the four runs, three earned, on three hits. She also struck out two batters. Freshman Taylar Coleman came in for the final inning for North Platte and gave up one earned run, struck out one batter and walked one.

North Platte is now 5-3 on the season and will next play in a dual in Kearney. The Lady Dawgs will play Hastings at 5:00 pm Thursday, followed by a game with Lincoln East at 6:30 pm. The complete softball schedule can be seen on the North Platte Post Bulldogs Sports Zone.

Game 1	1	2	3	R	H	E
North Platte	2	8	3	13	12	2
Lexington	0	1	0	1	2	7

Game 2	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
North Platte	2	1	0	1	2	5	2	13	15	3
Lexington	0	0	0	4	0	0	1	5	4	6

Mauch Leads the Dawgs to a Shutout Win over Columbus

Posted on August 30, 2014September 2, 2014

Shane Mauch threw for 128 yards and four touchdowns while running for 165 yards to lead North Platte to a 34-0 win over Columbus Friday.

The Bulldogs win snapped an 11-game losing streak dating back to the 2012 season. North Platte got the ball on the Columbus 40-yard line after the defense forced a three-and-out inside the Discoverers’ 10-yard line. The seven play drive culminated in a 12-yard touchdown pass from the senior quarterback Mauch to senior receiver Jacob Zimbelman to take a 7-0 lead.

North Platte made another trip to the end zone in the second quarter thanks to the defense setting them up with great field position. Columbus quarterback Blake Bubak was scrambling inside his own 20 when he was hit from behind by junior linebacker Ricky Sandoval jarring the ball loose. Sophomore defensive end Trevon Weaver was right on top of the play and came up with the fumble recovery at the Columbus 18-yard line. Two plays later Mauch connected with senior fullback Jobie Loving for a 13-yard touchdown to make it 14-0.

The Dawgs scored one more time before going into halftime when sophomore kicker Kort Steele drilled a 33-yard field goal to give North Platte a 17-0 lead at the break.

Steele was in the spotlight early in the third quarter after North Platte’s first second half drive stalled. Coach Bernie Madison elected to kick a field goal from 50 yards out. Steele lined up with the ball on the right hash and kicked a line drive that bounced off the crossbar through the uprights for a 20-0 Bulldog lead.

North Platte scored on its next two possessions with a 12-yard pass from Mauch to senior wide receiver Cameron Cox and the final score was a four-yard pass from Mauch to Cox once again.

Columbus’ best chance to score came in the third quarter when North Platte gave them the ball inside the Bulldog 20-yard line. The Discoverers punted and when the ball landed it hit a North Platte player and Columbus jumped on it with just 17 yards to go to the end zone. The threat quickly ended though as junior defensive back Marcos Reyes intercepted Bubak at the goal line to give the ball back to North Platte.

The North Platte defense stood tall all night by not allowing Columbus to get a first down on seven of the Discoverers’ drives.

North Platte unofficially racked up 391 yards of offense and the defense only gave up 123 yards to Columbus. The Dawgs are now 1-0 to start the 2014 season and will next play at home on Friday, September 5 against Lincoln High. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 pm at Bauer Field and the game can be heard on ESPN Radio 1410 with the pregame show starting at 6:30 pm.

Team	1	2	3	4	Final
North Platte	7	10	10	7	34
Columbus	0	0	0	0	0

The Bulldogs Split in Hastings

Posted on August 29, 2014

The North Platte Bulldogs split its double header against Omaha Gross and Omaha Skutt in Hastings Thursday.

North Platte played Gross in the first game and came away with a 3-2 win. The Cougars of Omaha Gross struck first with a run in the top of the first inning, but the Lady Dawgs quickly responded by scoring two runs in the bottom half of the first to go up 2-1. Gross tied the game in the second inning with an unearned run. The go-ahead run for North Platte came in the fourth inning. Jenny Keck tripled with one out to get into scoring position. One out later Rachel Kosmacek came to the plate and stroked a double to left-center field to score Keck, who ended up being the winning run. Kosmacek said she knew she could drive in the run.

“I was up to bat, two out, and I just said I can and hit the ball,” Kosmacek said. “Had a really good hit, probably my best hit in a really long time so it felt really good.”

Marisa Ramos led the way for North Platte against Gross. Ramos pitched a complete game to earn the win and gave up just two unearned runs on three hits. She also struck out five batters and walked two. She also added an RBI single at the plate and scored a run. Willow Chitty went 2-3 for the Dawgs with an RBI.

In the second game of the day North Platte lost to Omaha Skutt 5-3. Skutt took the early lead with two runs in the second inning thanks to four straight singles to lead off the inning. The Bulldogs responded by batting through the order and scoring three runs in the bottom of the third inning to take a 3-2 lead. The 3-2 score held going into the seventh inning when Omaha Skutt scored to tie the game then two North Platte errors allowed Skutt to take a 5-3 lead going into the bottom of the seventh. The Lady Dawgs got their first two batters on in the bottom of the seventh but a great double play turned by Skutt second baseman Katie Perkins put a stop to the rally and the third-ranked team in Class B beat North Platte.

Keck pitched the complete game and gave up five runs, two earned, on six hits. She also struck out four batters and walked one. Katie Franzen led the way at the plate by going 2-4 with a run scored.

North Platte is now 2-1 on the season and will next play Saturday at the LPS Classic Tourney in Lincoln. The Dawgs are in a pool with Fremont, Lincoln Southwest and Lincoln Pius X. They play Fremont at 11:00 Saturday morning, Lincoln Southwest at approximately 3:00 pm and Pius X at approximately 5:00 pm. All three games can be heard on ESPN Radio 1410.

The Lady Dawgs Shutout Adams Central to Start 1-0

Posted on August 22, 2014August 22, 2014

The North Platte Lady Bulldogs began the 2014 season with a dominant 10-0 run-rule victory over Adams Central in Hastings Thursday.

The Lady Dawgs wasted no time by jumping out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning, highlighted by a two-run double from clean-up hitter Kylie Engelman. North Platte added two runs in the second inning, one more in the third and finished with two runs in the fifth inning to go up 10-0. Senior catcher Mikenzi Wiseman delivered a two-out two-run double in the fifth inning to push the score to double digits.

Marisa Ramos led the way at the plate by going 3-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

Katie Franzen started the game inside the circle and pitched the first two innings giving up just one hit while striking out two batters and walking one. Jenny Keck came on in relief and helped combine for the shutout. Keck pitched the final three innings and gave up three hits and one walk while striking out three batters.

Keck was pitching when Adams Central threatened to score in the fourth inning. The Lady Patriots had runners at second and third with no outs. Coach Les O’Donnell called time to tell his team they could get out of the inning without allowing a run. Keck then proceeded to induce a short flyball to right field, followed by a strikeout then finally a pop-up to the catcher to end the inning and the threat.

North Platte will travel to Hastings again on Thursday, August 28 to play Omaha Skutt and Omaha Gross. The Lady Bulldogs will play Skutt at 4:30 then Gross at 6:15. Both games can be heard on ESPN Radio 1410.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	R	H	E
North Platte	5	2	1	0	2	10	10	0
Adams Central	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	5

NP Lady Bulldogs Softball to Begin Season with a Scrimmage Monday

Posted on August 13, 2014

Bulldogs Pitcher Katie Franzen Delivers a Pitch Against Omaha Gross last season.

The 2014 North Platte High School girls softball team will have an exhibition intrasquad softball scrimmage at 5:30 pm Monday, August 18 at the Wayne Dowhower Softball Complex.

The Lady Bulldogs are coming off a season where they went 25-11 and advanced to the Class B State Tournament in Hastings. North Platte went 0-2 at state but have a great chance to make it back to the state tournament. This year will have to be a different path though for the Lady Dawgs since they have moved back into Class A.

North Platte lost only one senior off of last year’s team and returns its entire pitching staff. The Lady Bulldogs also have a new head coach. Last year’s coach, BJ Songster, moved with her family to Idaho and last year’s assistant coach Les O’Donnell is the new head coach. His staff is completed with assistants: Molly Morales, Rick Titus and Jeff Barner.

Monday’s scrimmage will kickoff the season for North Platte and the public is invited to attend. The cost of admission is a bottle of water, Gatorade or other sports drink. A special invitation is extended to the youth softball players in the North Platte area.

The NPHS softball teams, varsity and junior varsity, will officially begin the 2014 season when they travel to Hastings on Thursday, August 21 to play Adams Central in double header contests. The First games of the double headers will begin at 5:00 pm.