Arcadia falls to West Salem for first loss

Coming into the spring, Arcadia and West Salem figured to be prominent contenders for the Coulee Conference crown. After the Raiders struck the first blow with a win in West Salem in late March, the Panthers returned the favor in the rematch in Arcadia last Tuesday.

West Salem (10-2, 6-1 Coulee) handed Arcadia (9-1, 6-1) their first loss of 2026, leaving the two teams tied atop the conference standings at the conclusion of last week’s games.

Outside of that defeat, the Raiders picked up wins over Viroqua and Fall Creek over the past week. They were off to a strong start on the road against Viroqua on Thursday, though the game was suspended due to thunderstorms with Arcadia ahead 4-0 in the top of the fourth.

The Raiders’ week ahead includes a home tilt with rival G-E-T on Thursday, road contests at Elk Mound on Friday and at Independence/Gilmanton on Monday, and a home game against Durand-Arkansaw on Tuesday. All four are scheduled to get underway at 5 p.m.

Arcadia 19 Viroqua 0

A well-rounded effort at the plate and a lockdown performance in the circle from Layna Wozney led to the Raiders pummeling the Blackhawks (1-8, 0-4) in five innings last Monday in Arcadia.

A nine-run second inning for Arcadia featured two RBI doubles by Madison Grotjahn, additional RBI doubles from Riley Walters and Tessah Ely and RBI singles courtesy of Sacia Boland and Tatum Drazkowski.

Drazkowski’s two-run home run was the highlight of a six-run rally in the third.

Grotjahn finished 3 for 3 with two doubles, three RBIs and three runs, while Drazkowski, Wozney, Walters and Kiley Fitzpatrick collected two hits apiece. Wozney also threw five shutout innings, allowing two hits and three walks while recording seven strikeouts.

West Salem 6 Arcadia 5

Tatum Drazkowski and Josie Brudos are two of the very best players in the Coulee Conference. Their individual excellence was on full display in the second of two regular season meetings between the Raiders and the Panthers last Tuesday in Arcadia.

The two teams were deadlocked 3-3 through three innings, with Brudos leading off the game with a solo home run. Brudos smacked another home run to lead off the fourth inning, and West Salem added an additional two runs in the top of the seventh to extend their lead 6-3.

Drazkowski got one back for the Raiders with a leadoff solo shot of her own to begin the bottom of the seventh. Arcadia scored again thanks to a Chloe Schlosstein RBI groundout that brought in Layna Wozney to cut the deficit to one, but Brudos escaped the jam with the potential tying run at second to finish off the win.

Drazkowski went 3 for 4 with a homer, a double, an RBI and two runs while Wozney finished 2 for 3 with a double and two runs scored. Brudos led the way for the Panthers by going 3 for 4 with two home runs, a double, two RBIs and three runs. 

Arcadia 15 Fall Creek 4

A consistent stream of runs resulted in the Raiders picking up a double-digit road victory over the Crickets (4-8) this past Friday in Fall Creek.

Arcadia scored in all seven innings, including Sacia Boland’s RBI single in the third, Layna Wozney’s RBI double and Chloe Schlosstein’s RBI single in the fourth, Tatum Drazkowski’s RBI triple in the fifth, RBI singles by Tessah Ely and Drazkowski in the sixth and Madison Grotjahn’s two-run home run in the seventh.

Grotjahn went 3 for 4 with a homer, a walk, three RBIs and three runs, Drazkowski finished 3 for 5 with a triple, a double, three RBIs and a run scored, and Boland was 3 for 5 with an RBI and two runs.