PdC Grasshoppers swarm Arcadia 12-2 in season opener
Starting pitcher Cael Koenig fires a pitch in the first inning of the Hoppers win over Arcadia. (Derick Kelly/Courier Press)
Pinch hitter Jack Simmons smacks this pitch for a base hit during the fourth inning. Simmons was one of nine different Hawks to have a hit in the game. (Derick Kelly/Courier Press)
Center fielder Brady Lenzendorf runs down this Arcadia fly ball. (Derick Kelly/Courier Press)
Deacon Chesebro (13, foreground) heads for home while Carter Tonne (14, background) races to score from first base on a two-run triple hit by Cael Koenig in the fourth inning of the Hoppers season opening win. (Derick Kelly/Courier Press)
Abe Amundson begins his delivery during the final inning of the Hoppers 12-2 win. (Derick Kelly/Courier Press)
Noah Pedretti looks to throw to first base after making a tough play at shortstop. Hoppers season opening win. (Derick Kelly/Courier Press)
By Derick Kelly
The Prairie du Chien Grasshoppers Post 68 19U American Legion Baseball team kicked off their 2025 season last Thursday, June 12 by hosting fellow Coulee Region league member Arcadia in a crossover game between members of the Halverson Division (Arcadia) and the Mason Division (Prairie du Chien).
Following a lead-off walk, Hoppers starting pitcher Cael Koenig scattered a pair of strikeouts around a stolen base attempt by Arcadia’s Deklyn Grzadzielewski that was quickly snuffed out by PdC catcher Bryce Lenzendorf to quickly escape the top of the first inning unharmed.
Noah Pedretti led off the bottom of the first with a single to right field before Carter Tonne reached base via walk to give the Hoppers with runners at first and second with no outs. An error by Arcadia on a steal of second by Tonne scored Pedretti and advanced Tonne to third base with no outs. Koenig then immediately helped his own cause by hitting a single to center field to score Tonne and make the score 2-0 in favor of the Hoppers. Arcadia got the Hoppers to hit into a double play on the next pitch for the first two outs of the inning before quickly getting the third out and escaping the jam.
The visitors in the top of the second inning took advantage of a one-out walk by Koenig by smacking a single before a passed ball put runners at second and third with one out. The Hoppers responded by trading a run for an out on a fielder’s choice to make the score 2-1 in favor of PdC with 2 outs. Arcadia’s Logan Wenger delivered a RBI single to tie the game up at 2-2. The Hoppers then got an infield pop-up to get out of the inning.
Abe Amundson got the Hoppers going in the bottom of the second inning with a double with one out before moving to third on a ground out. Deacon Chesebro singled to score Amundson as the Hoppers retook the lead for good at 3-2. Pedretti and Tonne followed with back-to-back RBI doubles before Koenig added a RBI single to extend Prairie’s lead to 6-2 after two innings.
It was all Hoppers the rest of the game as PdC scored five runs in the third and once in the fourth before shutting the door on Arcadia in the the fifth inning to claim a 12-2 win in five innings.
Prairie du Chien collected 15 hits in the game, with all but one player having at least one hit in the game. Five different Hoppers had multiple hits in the win: Koenig (3-for-3 with a triple and four RBIs), Pedretti (2-for-3 with a double, two runs scored and one RBI), Tonne (2-for-2 with a double, one walk, three runs scored and one RBI), Amundson (2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored) and Chesebro (2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs). Westin Marx also had a double for Prairie in the win.
Koenig earned the win on the mound, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks with two strikeouts in 4.0 innings pitched. Amundson pitched the fifth inning, allowing zero runs on zero hits with one walk and one strikeout to conclude the game.
The Hoppers were back in action this past Monday night when they traveled to G-E-T for a doubleheader before traveling to Tomah tomorrow for one game at 6:00 p.m. PdC is back home next Monday, June 23 when they host a doubleheader with Sparta starting at 5:00 p.m. at Dillman Memorial Field at St. Feriole Island Ballpark.
