CRICKET ... Selection success
Following recent disappointments, the Waikerie-Ramco A grade selectors were forced to make wholesale changes for the two day clash with Monash at Barmera.
Unavailable were captain Glynn Muster due to injury, Tyson Sutton, Sam Paschke, Brad Gay and Dave Golding who will return next Saturday in a swap with Ryan Edwards.
The Warriors welcomed back Kym Taylor for his first game since before Christmas after a serious finger injury and also added teenagers Bradley Wilksch, fresh from a century against Browns Well in the B grade competition last week and Zahir Hassani for his first game at A grade level.
They also recalled under 16 Jakob Hahn and Ben Schiller for another opportunity to impress before the finals begin.
This left the Warriors to field probably the youngest side in their 10-year history with seven teenagers, including three under 16s alongside four experienced players.
Monash were also undermanned with players the calibre of Dave Hastwell, Jason Trew, Russell Wickstein and Navjot Singh not able to be selected.
Acting captain Timothy Bevan won the toss and had no hesitation in choosing to bat on a very good wicket, but the slow outfield did not provide full value for strokes hit along the ground.
With 80 overs to bat the message was very clear – occupy the crease and the score will accumulate and use the later overs with wickets in hand to post a big total.
Bevan and Nathan Paschke became the fifth consecutive different opening partnership combination for the Warriors and they played with confidence and control against the bowling of Rhett Davis and Wayne Scadden, adding 27 runs from 13.5 overs before Paschke was bowled by Scadden attempting a big drive.
Ricky Griffiths joined Bevan and another 19 overs of solid defence, stylish strokes and good running between the wickets took the score to 66 before the innings high partnership of 39 was broken when Bevan (23) chased a wide delivery from Jake Albrecht and was caught behind by David Hankin.
This gave the Warriors a good platform to build a sizeable first innings score, but Hahn mistimed a pull shot and was caught behind in the 37th over, taking the score to 3/72.
Taylor and Griffiths kept their wickets intact until the tea break which was taken after 41 overs had been bowled with the score at 3/81.
Griffiths’ (39 with 2 x 4) good innings ended in the second over after tea when he attempted a quick single and was run out by a direct hit throw from mid on fieldsman Davis.
Meanwhile Taylor was looking in fine form despite his lengthy absence from the crease and he and under 16 Ramazan Hassani comfortably added 36 valuable runs until Taylor (33 with 3 x 4) was also caught behind by Hankin from the bowling of Davis in the 53rd over, leaving the score at a precarious 5/123.
In the next over Wilksch unfortunately misjudged the line of an Albrecht delivery and did not offer a shot.
He was hit on the pads, giving umpire Miatke no alternative but to raise his finger.
Schiller and Hassani, the under 16 opening pair, looked comfortable against the attack and added 18 runs from 8 overs until Hassani (18 with 1 x 4) lofted another Albrecht delivery (4/33 from 19 overs with 5 maidens) into the safe hands of Kade Boase at wide mid off.
This left the Warriors on a score of 7/142 after 61.2 overs.
With a possible 18.4 overs remaining in the innings, but with only three wickets in hand, the prospect of another ordinary score loomed.
However, Schiller was batting with poise and confidence and Chris Schutz looked intent on a lengthy stay at the crease.
In the 64th over Schiller suffered a hamstring strain and Bevan returned to the crease as runner, a move that seemed to aid the Warriors’ cause.
The pair/trio added a further 33 runs from 11 overs before Schutz (20 with 1 x 4) mistimed a stroke to mid off and was caught by Davis with the score at 8/175.
Edwards and Schiller then had 6.5 overs to face and did so in fine style, adding 30 quality runs, Schiller (26 not out with 1 x 4) played very well throughout his 27 over stay at the crease despite his injury and Edwards (23 not out with 1 x 4 and 1 x 6) played his best knock for the season, striking the ball very cleanly.
The Warriors finished with a very competitive 8/205, their best total since the second match of the season on October 24, 2009.
They had contributions throughout the innings with eight players reaching double figures and six batsmen scoring 20 or more.
They also had five partnerships of 27 or better and generally did not lose wickets in groups as has been the case recently.
Bearing in mind the slowness of the outfield and the quality of the opposition’s attack this was an impressive performance and gives the Warriors an opportunity to put the Monash batsmen under pressure next Saturday.

A GRADE
WAIKERIE-RAMCO V MONASH

Waikerie-Ramco 1st innings:
N Paschke bowled Scadden.....................................................12
T Bevan c. Hankin Albrecht......................................................23
R Griffiths run out (Davis).........................................................39
J Hahn c. Hankin Albrecht..........................................................1
K Taylor c. Hankin Davis...........................................................33
R Hassani c. Boase Albrecht....................................................18
B Wilksch lbw Albrecht...............................................................0
B Schiller not out.....................................................................26
C Schutz c. Davis Gregoric.......................................................20
R Edwards not out...................................................................23
Extras.........................................................................................10
TOTAL..................................................................................8/205

MONASH bowling
R Davis 1/30, W Scadden 1/39, K Boase 0/10, D Gregoric 1/27, J Albrecht 4/33, P Eleftheriadis 0/46, L Andrenacci 0/13.

B GRADE
LOXTON COLTS V WAIKERIE-RAMCO

Loxton Colts batting:
M. Gutsche c. b. D. Arnold........................................................91
K. Reynolds c. b. R. Atkinson...................................................10
A. Falcinella not out.................................................................68
D. Hampel not out....................................................................38
Extras........................................................................................32
Total....................................................................................2/239

Waikerie-Ramco bowling:
R. Atkinson 1/33, A. Modistach 0/32, V. Kaffexholli 0/38, M. Wenske 0/44, I. Baker 0/30, J. Kaffexholli 0/23, D. Arnold 1/28, A. Werner 0/9.

Waikerie-Ramco batting:
D. Arnold c. b. B. Falting.............................................................0
A. Werner c. b. B Falting.............................................................2
K. Thiel lbw b. B. Falting...........................................................20
M. Wenske c. b. B. Falting........................................................24
R. Atkinson c. b. K. Smith..........................................................6
S. Arnold c. b. K. Smith..............................................................0
J. Kafexholli c. b. B. Falting.........................................................1
V. Kaffexholli c. b. J. Hentschke.................................................1
T. Robinson c. b. B. Falting.........................................................0
A. Modistach c. b. J. Hentschke................................................6
I. Baker not out...........................................................................1
Extras...........................................................................................7
Total....................................................................................10/67

Loxton Colts bowling:
B. Falting 6/24, T. Gratze 0/14, K. Smith 2/24, J. Hentschke 2/3, B. Walters 0/2.

RIVERLAND U16s
LOXTON NORTH V WAIKERIE-RAMCO

Waikerie-Ramco 1st Innings:
B.Schiller Ct. N.Brown C.Maczwiak.........................................36
R.Hassani Bowled Tr. Hartley...................................................24
J.Hahn Ct. N.Brown N.Hentscke..............................................56
A.Werner Ct. T.Andrews N.Hentscke.........................................9
S. McKinnon Ct. Tr. Hartley N.Hentscke....................................1
A. Allen Ct. S.Turner Ty. Hartley..................................................6
J.Russell Bowled Tr. Hartley........................................................3
B. McGarrity Ct. T.Andrews S.Martin.........................................7
D.Marr Bowled T.Andrews........................................................13
M. Moxham Not Out...................................................................4
T.Truscott......................................................................DNB
Sundries....................................................................................24
Total....................................................................................9/183

Loxton North Bowling:
N.Hentscke 3/26, Tr.Hartley 2/14, Ty.Hartley 1/11, J.Martin 1/11, C.Maczwiak 1/20, T.Andrews 1/21.

GOLF ... Thomas still on top
James Thomas continued his good form in Saturday’s stroke round winning division 1 with 75/68.
Thank you to Linke Engineering who sponsored the competition.
New member Grant Carnell won division 2 with 93/68.
Wes ‘The handicapper’ has a sneaky suspicion he may have been too generous in Grant’s starting handicap.
Voucher winners were Wayne Morris 81/68, Jack Tscharke 102/69, Malcolm Thomas 81/70 and Graham Walters 98/70.
Agri-Tech NTP winners were Trevor Kranz on 6 and Wes Bald on 17.
Oxford Landing longest drive for division 1 was big-hitting Jamie Myer on 9.
The Oxford Landing longest drive for division 2 was never found.
It’s either gone for a walk in someone’s golf bag or been placed somewhere obscure. Number 13 was the green to score a birdie on with Wes Bald, Jamie Myer and Malcolm Thomas all managing one.
Apparently Chris Harden had the shot of the day with his tee shot on 4 not making the Ladies marker, but bouncing about one metre high instead.
And Midge has asked that it not be mentioned he went out of bounds twice on 11.
Wednesday’s stableford completion was won by Andrew Schutz 38 points followed by Neville Kelton 37 and Geoff Bald and Mick Wills on 35.
Joel Sheehan scored the only birdie on 6 and also Agri-Tech NTP on 3.
Next Saturday completion is a Stableford sponsored by Hansen Electric.

Is this the year?
Waikerie is just two games away from its first Riverland division one men’s pennant flag in 17 years.
Waikerie faces Berri at Barmera this Saturday in the preliminary final and hopes to gain a grand final berth against Renmark next week.
Just five players remain from the 1992/93 premiership team including Stan Burnett, Gary Pursche, Robert Thompson, John Segneri and Barry Harden.
Harden said the bowls season was vastly different 17 years ago with the top team winning the flag – there were no finals.
“On that day Waikerie was playing Barmera and Loxton, who was top played Lyrup and all they had to do was win,” he said.
“Lyrup rolled Loxton and Barmera beat us, but we ended up with more points.
“I never felt like we won it – we didn’t go out and play a winning match, we more fell over the line.
“It’s a different feeling now (with finals).”
Last season Waikerie made the preliminary final, but lost to Loxton after leading for most of the match.
“The motivator is that we want to win a pennant in the next three years,” Harden said.
“We have new guys that we are bringing up and we’re probably one step ahead of where we thought we’d be.
“We had been fourth for a while and this year we finished second and had a chance at top.
“Now we are back to where we were last year in a preliminary, but it’s a motivator to go further.
“We have a lot of guys who are young, keen, energetic and want to win it.”
Berri and Waikerie have met twice this season and shared the points with both teams winning at home.
Berri was victorious by 34 shots in round 13, while Waikerie won by four shots in round six.
“It will be very interesting what will happen on neutral ground,” Harden said.
“We know we’ll have to play well, we will have to fight to get it and that’s what sport is all about.”
During Saturday’s second semi final Waikerie narrowly lost to Renmark by one shot.

Ladies Lawn Bowls
Second division in grand final
In their last match for the season, Waikerie’s division one ladies were defeated by Loxton 59-47.
Denise Thompson’s team defeated Ev Saint 23-13.
Mavis Elsworthy’s team defeated Noeleen Milich 20-17 and Nancy Teasdale’s team lost to Lorraine Lee 4-29.
Second division had better luck with a good win over Barmera, therefore placing them in second overall on the points table.
Scores were Waikerie 61 to Barmera 42.
Joan Miller, Gail Pursche, Ev Morgan and Harold Peebles defeated A. Macro’s team 24-15.
Meg Powardy, Von Hill, Vi Bell and Ronda Cain defeated S. Barnett’s team 23-12.
Jan Brock, Marion Monaghan, Alice Lewis and Edna Pfitzner lost to K. Brown’s team 14-15.
In the last game, scores were even on the 15th, 17th and 19th end, but Barmera managed to score one shot on the last end and took the points.
Division two played in the second semi final at Renmark on Monday, March 8.
Waikerie were winners over Loxton Red in an exciting game 55 to 47, placing Waikerie into the grand final to be played at Renmark on Friday.
Lucy Gillespie, Gail Pursche, Ev Morgan and Joan Miller had a good win over M. Campbell’s team 24-8.
Loxton failed to score until the 11th end.
Meg Powardy, Ronda Cain, Vi Bell and Von Hill 15 lost to D. Vaughan’s team 18.
Jan Brock, Marion Monaghan, Alice Lewis and Edna Pfitzner 16 lost to M. Wetherald’s team 21.
The Ladies now look forward to Friday, when they play the winner of Wednesday’s game between Loxton Red and Loxton Blue.
Good luck to all who play in their back to back grand final.

DIVISION ONE
Second semi-final
Berri 55 d Loxton 48.
J. Grosser 16 d N. Milich 13, K. Treloar 20 d L. Lee 11, K. Mader 19 lost to E. Saint 24.
First semi-final
Renmark 62 d Barmera 48.
S. Schulz 17 lost to B. Jaeschke 22, M. Leesue 19 d G. Burns 14, J .Cooper 26 d S. Lockwood 12.
DIVISION TWO
Second semi-final
Waikerie 55 d Loxton Red 47.
J. Brock 16 lost to M. Wetherall 21, M. Powardy 15 lost to D. Vaughan 18, L. Gillespie 24 d M. Campbell 8.
First semi-final
Loxton Blue 60 d Barmera 43.
R. Auricht 25 d S. Barnett 6, M. Westbrook 21 d A. Macro 18, R. Fielke 14 lost to K. Brown 19.
DIVISION THREE
Second semi-final
Loxton RSL Gold 42 d Loxton RSL Green 24.
L. Schultz 19 d C. Manuel 14, M. Lindner 23 d J. Graham 10.
First semi-final
Barmera 43 d Moorook 39.
J. Grigg 18 lost to V. Johnson 19, J. Vidorin 25 d K. Tschirpig 20.

Mid Murray bowls
Results for March 6:
Cadell played host to Blanchetown where C Davies [S Bland ] played S Giles on the 5th 5-4 / 10th 9-7 / 15th 11-11 / 20th 16-14 / 25th 20-17. G Winter [ B Loxton ] played K Wagenknecht on the 5th 6-3 / 10th 9-8 / 15th 12-10 / 20th 19-19 / 25th 27-24. K Saunders played B Lange on the 5th 7-3 / 10th 14-5 / 15th 16-9 / 20th 26-10 / 25th 34-16. Cadell12-81 Blanchetown 0-57.
Swan Reach played host to Morgan where R Collins played D Evans on the 5th 3-5 / 10th 8-10 / 15th 15-18 / 20th 28-19 / 25th 33-24. H Cocking { W Collins] Played R speck on the 5th 11-2 / 10th 18-7 / 15th 20-11 / 20th 24-13 / 25th 28-15. N Drechsler played E Pobke on the 5th 8-0 / 10th 23-1 / 15th 26-6 / 20th 32-10 / 25th 37-13. Swan Reach 12-98 Morgan 0-54.
Pennant Table; Cadell 118 Blanchetown 113 Swan Reach 113 Morgan 38.
The chances are there for any of the top three clubs to take out the flag.
On Sunday the singles championship was played at Cadell and the weather was not at all favourable for a good day of bowling.
But despite the rain we managed to get through the day with a result.
Representing the clubs were E. Pobke, of Morgan, K. Wagenknecht of Blanchetown, W. Collins of Swan Reach and K. Saunders, of Cadell.
The winner of the day was W Collins with three straight wins.
Results for February 20:
Cadell v Morgan; S Bland 22 R Speck 25; G Winter 26 D Evans 15; K Saunders 25 A Caterer 14; Cadell 10 -73 Morgan 2-54.
Swan Reach v Blanchetown; N Drechsler 25 A Smith 21; W Collins 26 B Lange 29; R Collins 14 K Wagenknecht 26; Swan Reach 2-65 Blanchetown 10-76. Results on 27-2-10.
Swan Reach v Cadell; R Collins 19 S Bland 21; W Collins 32 G Winter 18; N Drechsler 38 K Saunders 21; Swan Reach 10-89 Cadell 2-60.
Morgan v Blanchetown; R Speck 26 B Lange 23; D Evans 23 S Giles 31; A Caterer 19(14.25) K Wagenknecht 38; Morgan 2-63.25 Blanchetown 10-92.
Results for February 13:
Swan Reach v Morgan; R Collins 23 E Pobke 18; N Drechsler 30 D Evans 26; W Collins 40 R Speck6; Swan Reach 12-93 Morgan 0-50.
Blanchetown v Cadell; S Giles 30 G Winter 19; B Lange 21 K Saunders 22; K Wagenknecht 14 D Smith 31; Blanchetown 2-65 Cadell 10-72.
Results for February 6:
Swan Reach played host to Cadell where R Collins played C Davies [B Loxton] on the 5th 0-13 / 10th 4-14 / 15th 10-16 / 20th 11-29 / 25th 16-34. N Drechsler played S Bland on the 5th 4-5 / 10th 6-12 / 15th 8-21 / 20th 11-31 / 25th 12-38. A Bradbrook [W Collins] played D Smith [K Saunders] on the 5th 5-3 / 10th 12-7 / 15th 19-9 /20th 21-12 / 25th 24-17. Swan Reach 10-89 Cadell 2-52.
Blanchetown played host to Morgan where S Giles played A Caterer [B Leaney] on the 5th 4-6 / 10th 6-15 / 15th 8-22 / 20th 9-26 / 25th 22-28. B Lange played R Speck on the 5th 10-3 / 10th 12-10 / 15th 20-11 / 20th 22-17 / 25th 29-19. K Wagenknecht played D Evans on the 5th 9-1 / 10th 10-9 / 15th 11-16 / 20th 19-18 / 25th 20-25. Blanchetown 2-71 Morgan 10-72.

RIVERLAND BASKETBALL ... Juniors to jump on finals chance
Waikerie has just two sides remaining in the Riverland Basketball Association’s finals race.
This Friday the under 18 boys will face off against Loxton at Loxton in the first semi final at 9.30pm.
The boys finished fourth on the ladder, but have some form under their belt after finishing the season with a 30-point win over Renmark.
Mitch White will prove vital to the team’s chances after scoring 35 points and 43 points in his past two games.
Meanwhile, Waikerie’s under 18 girls remain the town’s best chance of a championship after finishing the season two games clear on top of the ladder.
The girls play Berri at Waikerie this Friday at 7.30pm.
In the final match of the minor round Waikerie defeated Barmera 61 to 27 behind Alicia Curtis’ 18-point effort.

DIV 2 MEN
SEMI FINAL
Warriors 42 lost to Barmera 47
The Warriors exited the finals series earlier than expected in a close encounter with Barmera at Loxton on Thursday.
The Warriors lineup was vastly different to the side that defeated Barmera by 30 points earlier in the season with both Nigel Hole and Cameron Hawke unavailable.
The side had to quickly adjust to a smaller, faster lineup.
Three under 18 players made the move up in grade and did their best to get the team over the line.
The Warriors began well and had a four point lead early in the piece.
However, that was quickly eroded and became a deficit by quarter time.
Paul Wurst was grabbing everything under the ring, but struggled to translate the possessions into points.
Craig Treloar also had one of his poorer shooting nights and tried to adapt into a swingman to give open looks to his team mates.
However, the Warriors were struggling to get the points on the board and their usual free flowing, transition game wasn’t coming together without their usual targets up forward.
At half time Wurst had four fouls and sat out the entire third quarter.
This temporarily changed the dynamic of the game and allowed the Warriors to level the scores at three quarter time following some good baskets by Mitch White (11 points) and free throws/drives by Chris Mibus (17 points).
Wurst was brought back into the game in the final term, but fouled out and the Warriors were down to five.
Under 18s Jason Redemski and Kobi Ryan competed well against their older and wiser opponents, but without Wurst’s presence on defense several gaps began to open and Barmera took full advantage with several successful drives.
In the dying minutes the margin widened as the Warriors tried to inject some energy with a three pointer or foul call, but neither came.
Barmera now moves on to face Loxton in the preliminary finals while the Warriors are left to lament a season that promised so much, but fell apart at the serious end.
With two late season forfeits due to a lack of players, a constantly changing lineup and only four senior players qualified to play finals – a tough finals series was always on the cards.
Under 18s Redemski, Ryan, and Mitch and Paul White each filled in for several matches in the past three weeks and brought keenness and energy to the side.
Hopefully the experience will set them up for a good season in division two next year.

RESULTS:

DIVISION TWO

Second semi-final
Supercats 48 (M. Hutchinson 18, M. Thiele 14, A. Montgomery 13, B. Skinner 3) d Loxton 26 (S. Harman 8, J. Harris 6, M. Fazekas 6).

First semi-final
Barmera 47 (D. Clarke 18, S. Marks 13, B. Morelli 6) d Warriors 42 (C. Mibus 17, M. White 11, P. Wurst 8).
Preliminary final: 6.30pm Loxton v Barmera @ Loxton.

WOMEN

DIVISION TWO

Second semi-final

Allstars 34 (L. Sweeney 8, N. Jachmann 7, K. Wooldridge 6, D. Waechter 5) d Waikerie 31 (R. Hahn 13, A. Curtis 10).

First semi-final
Renmark 38 (E. Steed 12, R. Leuders 9, L. Brand 6, D. Gartery 6) d Supercats 31 (T. Fielke 8, K. Shankland 7).

Preliminary final: 6.30pm Waikerie v Renmark @ Glossop.

DIVISION THREE

Second semi-final
Renmark 27 (S. Duggin 7, L. Pearce 7, J. O’Loughlin 4) d Berri 23 (L. Mensforth 6).

First semi-final
Barmera 38 (V. Vlassopoulos 17, T. Pampling 9, D. Smith 6) d Loxton 32 (J. Falland 8, S. Falting 7, K. Milich 6, M. Pfeiler 6).

Preliminary final: 7.30pm Berri v Barmera @ Glossop.

RIVERLAND MEN’S PENNANTS ... Sean’s trail secures second semi
Waikerie division one bowlers travelled to Renmark on Saturday for the second semi final of Riverland pennant bowls. After leading Renmark all day, Waikerie went down by just one shot on the final end.
Waikerie had two rinks up and two down in the loss to Renmark and now will play Berri this week in the knockout preliminary final after Berri accounted for Loxton also at Renmark Bowling Club.
Division three travelled to Monash and took on Renmark Blue in the knockout first semi final. Unfortunately after their stirring win last week all three rinks lost in a 47-70 end to their season.
Division four travelled to Loxton and they too had a day to forget getting a bowling lesson from Loxton Red losing all three rinks going down 34-75.

DIV 1:
Waikerie was confident of a good showing against Renmark following their form earlier in the year.
In the previous two meetings Waikerie had a one shot loss at Renmark and a good win at home over the top team.
Saturday’s match saw Waikerie leading at half time before a dramatic finish as Renmark’s Sean Leesue pulled out two incredible shots to get Renmark over the line by a solitary shot.
Leesue took on Barry Harden whose rink again had a shuffle of the decks looking for a winning line-up.
Roger Davies went to lead, John Segneri to second and Kym Pursche to three and this proved a good change as they set about building a good early lead.
Harden led 11-4 after nine ends, but then dropped the last three ends before lunch to go into the break with a one shot lead 11-10.
After the break they won five out of the next six ends to scoot away to a 24-11 lead before dropping shots on the 18th, 19th and 20th ends.
The drama had built for their final end as the other three rinks had finished and the scores across the boards were all square.
As the skippers crossed over Harden was holding one shot with the match in the balance.
Leesue had the first bowl and played with weight into the head slicing the jack to the out of bounds marker on the right of their rink.
The jack was ruled in bounds and Harden was left to draw the shot while avoiding the ditch.
He did, which left Waikerie with the match in hand, before Leesue remarkably trailed the jack into the ditch making it impossible for Harden to beat, despite still having a bowl in hand and leading the match 24-16
Brian Burnett, Stan Burnett, Richard Law and Nathan Cronin also had a good day taking on the dangerous John Thompson.
They began well winning seven of the first 11 ends, which included a six on the eighth end to lead 16-8 at the half way mark.
Burnett went on to win four of the next six ends to lead Thompson 25-13 with four ends to go.
Thompson then won the 18th, 19th and 21st ends to pick up vital shots eventually going down to Burnett 27-18.
Tim Strauss faced up to Renmark’s top rink Bill Dopson and had a titanic struggle throughout the day eventually going down by two shots 15-17.
Strauss, Brian Rogers, Darren Kleemann and Robert Thompson led 8-5 after 11 ends going into the lunch break winning six of the first 11 ends.
They shared the spoils over the next seven ends to lead 13-12 with three ends remaining. Dopson then won the 19th and 20th ends picking up five shots before Strauss won the last picking up two shots to finish two shots adrift at 15-17.
Garry Pursche, Peter Fechner, Ken Dubrich and Andy Fulwood took on Steve Ivanovic and had a day to forget as Ivanovic and his third Ron Philips dominated the match with excellent draw and drive shots.
The Waikerie rink were continually under pressure and weren’t getting good enough starts to put Renmark under pressure as time and again Ivanovic converted and controlled then game to lead 17-4 at the lunch break.
Things didn’t get much better after lunch as Renmark skipped away to a 22-5 lead with six ends remaining.
Pursche then rallied winning four ends in a row, but only picked up five shots before dropping two shots on each of the last two ends to go down 10-26 in a disappointing loss.
Waikerie now face Berri at Barmera this week and will look to go one better than last year and make it into the grand final, to again give Renmark a run for their money this time on neutral ground.

DIV 3
Waikerie travelled to Monash and found the slow greens very difficult to handle ending their season with a disappointing exit from the finals race going down to Renmark Blue by 23 shots 47-70.
Sid Copeland had a very close game against P Lindsay eventually prevailing by just one shot taking the match 18-17.
Copeland, Robert Ebert, Barry Wiese and Max Thompson won five of the first 11 ends to go into the lunch break at 11 shots all. The second half saw Copeland win seven of the next eight ends to lead 18-12 with two ends remaining and despite losing the last two ends held on for a 1-shot win.
Merv Rolton ended the season with a rare loss going down to J O’Loughlin 20-23. Rolton, Harold Schiller, Spike Jones and Jack Powardy won six of the first 11 ends to lead 14-13 but then won just three of the remaining 10 ends to go down by three shots overall.
It was chocolates to boiled lollies for David Warner who had a day to forget against M Weiss going down by 21 shots overall.
Warner, Harold Peebles, Frank Gaeta and Clyde Wilson could not get their game going trailing 3-17 at the lunch break winning just two of the first 11 ends. They then won four of the last 10 ends to go down 9-30 overall ending their season on a sour note.

DIV 4:
Waikerie travelled to Loxton taking on Loxton Red in the second semi final, but the game plan went right out the window as all three rinks went down to the home team by a massive 41 shots.
The flexi rink was the best performing group going down by six shots 14-20 to K Henderson.
Mick Brown, Craig Davis, Adrian Sandrey and Bruce O’Loughlin got away to an ordinary start trailing 12 nil after five ends before rallying ahead of the lunch break to trail 7-14 after 11 ends.
They then won five of the last 10 ends, but couldn’t make up the difference lost in the first five ends.
Tom Cain, Roly Haese, Kevin Gillespie and Des Tilley also had a tough day at the office going down to G Reichstein by 14 shots. Cain’s rink won just three of the first 11 ends to trail 3-17 at the lunch break. They went on to win five of the last 10 ends, but could make any headway eventually going down 12-26.
Ron Sauer’s rink after taking the champion of champion’s trophy last week, came back to earth with a crunch going down to E Davey by 21 shots.
Sauer, Jack Dolan, Roly Pfitzner and Colin Ramm won three of the first 11 ends to trail 4-20 at the lunch break and then won just four of the remaining 10 ends to go down 8-29.
Division four get another chance this week in the preliminary final and will hope to bounce back for another crack at Loxton when they travel to Renmark RSL to face Barmera for their chance.

DIVISION ONE

First semi-final

Berri 82 d Loxton 69.
D. Treloar 22 d B. Bald 19, A. Hill 13 lost to V. Pavia 17, C. Treloar 23 d P. Kimber 15, A. Gapco 24 d B. Schubert 18.

Second semi-final

Renmark 77 d Waikerie 76.
S. Leesue 16 lost to B. Harden 24, W. Dopson 17 d T. Strauss 15, S. Ivanovic 26 d G. Pursche 10, J. Thompson 18 lost to B. Burnett 27.

DIVISION TWO

First semi-final

Renmark 59 d Moorook 53.
M. Rice 16 lost to C. Pantic 22, M. Brady 23 d J. White 11, I. Carnachahn 20 drew with S. Pantic 20.

Second semi-final

Monash 77 d Loxton RSL 51.
W. Barnett 20 d B. Rose 18, M. Voigt 31 d R. Ray 15, K. Ruediger 26 d T. Lehmann 18.

DIVISION THREE

First semi-final

Renmark Blue 70 d Waikerie 47.
J. O’Loughlin 23 d M. Rolton 20, M. Weiss 30 d D. Warner 9, P. Lindsay 17 lost to S. Copeland 18.

Second semi-final

Monash 54 d Loxton Yellow 49.
I. Radosevic 16 d C. Jenke 13, M. Passmore 14 lost to N. Jenke 18, A. Viney 24 d W. Ahrens 18.

DIVISION FOUR

First semi-final

Barmera 55 d Berri 52.
B. Schulz 11 lost to B. Warland 26, J. Vidorin 23 d D. Vlemmix 13, F. Roberts 21 d P. Johnson 13.

Second semi-final

Loxton Red 75 d Waikerie 34.
K. Henderson 20 d M. Brown 14, C. Reichstein 26 d T. Cain 12, E. Davey 29 d R. Sauer 8.

Riverland Softball ... One in…one out

B Grade
Preliminary Final – Waikerie two lost to Cobby Gold 9
Best players – all played well
Waikerie were up against top side Cobby, who were given a second chance at progressing through to the grand final after their thrashing the previous week against Cobby Blue.
Waikerie knew this was going to be a tough game.
Batting first against the seasoned Cobby A grade pitcher saw a massive hit to outfield from Sarah Schiller that was unfortunately caught out.
Nat Collins and Sarah Kuchel were also up to bat, but were unable to get safely to base. No runs were scored by Waikerie.
Taking the field saw an excellent start to the innings by Waikerie.
An infield fly ball was caught out by Lisa Surfield covering third base.
Young Dylan Marr caught a magnificent flyball hit to him deep at centerfield for the second out.
With runners at first and second and with the force onto third base saw a ground ball fielded by Sarah Kuchel at short stop who flicked the ball into third base to tag the runner out.
Side away with no runs scored by Cobby.
Helen Johnson stepped up to the plate as the first batter in this innings and had lady luck on her side smashing the ball to centerfield that saw the fielder drop the ball from her glove.
Dylan Marr was able to hit safely to first base to advance Helen to second.
Rachel Foster also hit safely to get to first base.
With two runners on base, Kristen Pick had a great hit to centerfield that saw her bring home Helen Johnson for the first run on the board.
The tension was certainly building when Waikerie took the field again.
Another brilliant innings of fielding thanks to Kristen Pick catching an outfield flyball at left field.
Sarah Kuchel had a great game covering short stop.
The next two outs were thanks to Sarah – she fielded the ground ball and flicked into Nat Collins at second base for the out and then fielded the ball again to tag the runner out at second base for side away.
Again no runs were scored by Cobby.
Coming back into bat, Waikerie needed to be aggressive in their batting to score more runs.
Sarah Kuchel was able to hit safely to get to first base.
Helen Johnson up to bat smashed the ball past centerfield that saw Sarah Kuchel advance home for the second run on the board.
Waikerie were leading by two runs.
It was certainly a finals match with very few fielding errors made by Waikerie.
Helen Johnson as Waikerie’s pitcher fielded the ball hit directly to her and threw into Rachel Foster at first base for an easy out.
The next batter up also hit in the same spot and again Helen fielded the ball and threw into first for the second out.
Sarah Kuchel took a great infield flyball catch at short stop for the third out.
Cobby managed three runs in this innings so were now in front by one run.
Coming back into bat, the Waikerie side had to claw back its lead but was unable to get safely on base.
The next three batters up to bat were all able to hit the ball, but were unable to get safely to first base.
Taking the field again, Waikerie seemed to loose their fire a bit and almost looked defeated. Cobby were able to score four runs in this innings through walks on base.
It was unfortunate for Waikerie as this loaded up the bases and Cobby took advantage of this.
Despite this Waikerie kept going with Helen Johnson regaining her composure as pitcher and showing everyone why she was named runner up best and fairest in the Riverland by striking out a batter.
The second out came from a bunt which was fielded by the pitcher and the ball thrown into first base.
The third out came from and infield flyball caught by Rachel Foster at first base.
With one last chance to bring in runs on the board, Waikerie tried its best but Cobby was too strong in its fielding.
With two outs on the board, Sarah Kuchel was able to hit safely as did Helen Johnson.
With two runners on base, it looked like Waikerie were going to be able to bring in some runs, however this was not to be as the last batter was out at first base.
Helen Johnson again was formidable as pitcher striking out the Cobby batter.
Another two runs were scored by Cobby thanks to a massive hit that soared over the heads of the Waikerie outfield.
With a seven run lead, the umpire checked the scores and called Time and Game after only an hour of play thanks to the five run mercy rule in finals.
It was unfortunate for Waikerie to not be given another opportunity to try and turn the game around.
It was an excellent effort by the B grade side that had to recover from the loss of injured players, a coach and players who pulled out of the team early in the season.
To finish third on the ladder in B grade shows that Waikerie was able to bring it together and will be ready to try and take the flag next season.

C Grade
Preliminary Final - Waikerie 13 defeated Loxton 12
Best players – All played well
Given a second chance to progress through to the grand final, the C grade side had to give everything they had in order to beat the pumped up Loxton side.
Taking the field first saw a great start with Liam Howell as Waikerie’s pitcher, fielding a bunt which he then threw into Mel Sweet at first base.
Bethany Smith at second base fielded a ground ball hit to her and flicked the ball into first base.
Mel Sweet covering first base caught a great infield fly ball for side away.
Loxton had scored three runs in their dig at the bat.
Coming into bat the Waikerie side all batted aggressively, which saw runs on the board. Brad Howell, Liam Howell, Bethany Smith, Dylan Marr and Mel Briscoe all batted safely to bring in runs on the board.
Waikerie now held a three run lead.
Taking the field again, Loxton were fired up and batted hard to regain their lead on the board.
Waikerie were unable to get on top of the ball when it was hit and simple fielding errors cost Waikerie their three run lead.
Seven runs were scored by Loxton in this innings and side away was called due to the Mercy rule of seven runs in one innings in a finals match.
This seemed to fire up Waikerie even more with all of the C grade team on their feet cheering on their batters.
With loaded bases, Mel Sweet stepped up to the plate and smashed the ball past centerfield to bring home three runners.
Elyisha Williams also batted a two bag hit that saw her bring in runs on the board.
Waikerie were not about to let a grand final berth slip away so with seven runs on the board, side away was called as well for Waikerie.
Taking the field, Waikerie needed to hold their one run lead and did a great job keeping their fielding tight.
Bethany Smith fielded the ball at second base to throw into first base for the first out.
Mel Briscoe as Waikerie’s pitcher caught an infield fly ball for the second out.
With a runner on base, Waikerie had to keep Loxton scoreless and they did this thanks to a great outfield flyball caught by Dylan Marr at centerfield.
Coming back in to bat again, the umpire checked the scores and called time and game. Waikerie had won the game by one run.
They will now play in the grand final this Saturday, March 13 at Glassey Park at 4pm against Cobdogla.
Thank you to our wonderful scorer Jill Kerr and to the many Waikerie supporters who braved the cold weather to cheer on our C and B grade sides.