A sixth straight trip to state was not in the cards for Clintonville’s American Legion baseball team.
That’s not the case for New London, however, as the Clippers won their Class AA regional over the weekend with two wins over Shawano and a victory over Shiocton.
The Clippers are one of eight teams participating in the Class AA State Tournament in Onalaska. New London will open the double-elimination tournament at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Aug. 3, against Rhinelander, joining teams from Beaver Dam, Menasha, Sturgeon Bay, Menomonie, Holmen and Onalaska.
Meanwhile, Clintonville and Weyauwega-Fremont came up short in the championship games of their respective Class A regionals. Clintonville fell to Waupun 5-1 July 29 in Clintonville, while W-F dropped a 6-4 decision to Nekoosa July 28 in Nekoosa.
Class AA
New London’s games will be played at Rick Stuhr Memorial Field in Onalaska. To get to the field, take the U.S. Highway 53 North exit off of Interstate 90 near La Crosse, turn left on Main Street and turn right on Sand Lake Road (County Trunk S).
The schedule for the tournament is:
• Friday, Aug. 3: Game 1: Rhinelander vs. New London, 9:30 a.m.; Game 2: Beaver Dam vs. Menasha, noon; Game 3: Sturgeon Bay vs. Menomonie, 2:30 p.m.; Game 4: Holmen vs. Onalaska, 5:30 p.m.
• Saturday, Aug. 4: Game 5: Game 1 loser vs. Game 3 loser, 10 a.m.; Game 6: Game 2 loser vs. Game 4 loser, 12:30 p.m.; Game 7: Game 1 winner vs. Game 3 winner, 3 p.m.; Game 8: Game 2 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 5:30 p.m.
• Sunday, Aug. 5: Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 loser, noon; Game 10: Game 5 winner vs. Game 8 loser, 2:30 p.m.; Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 5 p.m.
• Monday, Aug. 6 (pairings to be adjusted to match teams that have not previously met or have not played since the first round): Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 11 loser, 2:30 p.m.; Game 13: Game 10 winner vs. Game 11 winner, 5 p.m.
• Tuesday, Aug. 7 (if three teams remain, Game 11 winner will receive bye into Game 15): Game 14: Game 12 winner vs. Game 13 winner, 2:30 p.m.; repeat if necessary, 5 p.m.
The Clippers wrapped up a regional championship with a 10-6 win over Shawano July 28, as Matt Otte picked up the win on the mound.
New London scored five runs in the first inning July 27 in a 6-3 win over Shawano and also defeated Shiocton 12-5 July 26.
Waupaca also competed in the regional, but fell to Shawano 9-1 July 26, beat Shiocton 13-1 July 27 and dropped a 1-0 decision to Shawano July 28.
Hortonville and Waushara County competed in the Kaukauna Regional. Hortonville beat Waushara County 8-1 and Kaukauna 10-0 and 7-6, but dropped a pair of games to eventual champion Menasha 6-4 and 10-8. Waushara County’s other game was a 10-2 loss to Menasha.
Class A
Clintonville defeated Waupun earlier in the tournament, but the Diamondcats came up short in the rematch.
Adam Schmitt held Clintonville to five hits, while teammate Jordan Hopp had three hits and a pair of RBIs.
Turner Doornink came up with the Diamondcats’ only run of the game, a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning.
Nate Hopp and Colin DeBoer gave Waupun the lead with RBI singles in the fourth off of Clintonville starter Jansen Van Daalwyk.
Clintonville’s other games included 6-1 and 4-3 wins over Bonduel, a 6-5 win over Keshena, a 9-0 win over Waupun and an 11-10 loss to Fond du Lac.
Marion/Tigerton lost both of its games in the tournament, 15-0 to Waupun and 5-4 to Bonduel.
Weyauwega-Fremont opened the Nekoosa tournament by shutting out Green Lake 17-0. W-F then fell to Nekoosa 2-1, but stayed alive with a 13-6 win over Wittenberg-Birnamwood. W-F then eliminated Ripon from the tournament before falling to Nekoosa in the title game.
The Class A state tournament will be held in Bruce.