Peotter was named to the Second Team All-Northern Athletics Conference squad and Prusak to the All-Sportsmanship Team.

Peotter led the NAC with 37 stolen bases. The junior outfielder also led her team in batting average (.376), home runs (4), RBI’s (20), runs (33) and hits (44).

Prusak batted .278 with 15 RBI’s and 21 runs.

How did the Crusaders fare?

As a team, Maranatha exceeded their fielding percentage (.964) and came very close in batting average (.294).

The team also posted a .347 OBP and registered two NAC wins, and seven overall. The team improved in all categories except last year’s OBP (.367).

In their two NAC victories, the Crusaders proved their ability to play at a higher level, winning 5-1 against Wisconsin Lutheran and 3-1 versus Edgewood. The team also pushed Edgewood to seven innings, in a 13-10 loss.

Individually, Autumn Peotter made the Second Team All-NAC squad while leading the conference in stolen bases (37).

Peotter led the team in multiple categories, including batting average (.376), home runs (4), and RBI’s (20).

A year removed from softball, junior catcher Sadie Joutras (Crest Hill, Ill.) gave Maranatha a steady bat (.375 avg.) and big arm behind the plate.

Another returning player, Kristin Morrison (Jefferson, Wis.), who sat out last year, suffered a season-ending injury. Morrison started at second base and was a key contributor until dislocating her shoulder.

Despite lack of depth and Morrison’s injury, the softball team can take encouragement in a much improved and athletic team in comparison to 2011.

The marked improvements give Coach Thompson new goals to establish that realistically can translate into more wins.

The Rams and Crusader’s have butted heads in the past two Regional Tournaments, with North Central posting a 3-0 shutout this year.

Last year, with a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the seventh, North Central came back to win it 2-1.

Sophomore Tim Shelp (Independence, Mo.) pitched five innings and held the Rams to three runs on five hits while striking out five, but missed scoring opportunities doomed Maranatha in a 3-0 loss.

The highlight of the tournament came when junior second baseman Jason Garrison (Watertown, Wis.) posted his 100th career hit.

Garrison finished the season with 34 hits and currently stands as the career hits leader for Maranatha.

Garrison also set the record for career stolen bases (52) by a Maranatha player, followed by teammate Nathan Lyle (32) in second.

The Crusaders failed to record a win in the competitive Northern Athletics Conference, but had several impressive performances.

Perhaps the best example, a 4-0 loss at the hands of Concordia Wisconsin, was a scoreless affair entering the seventh inning. The Falcons were held to seven hits until that point by Joel Borchardt (Watertown, Wis.) and waited until the eighth to score three more.

In a loss to Edgewood, Derek Funkhouser (Paris, Ill.) held the Eagles scoreless through four innings before succumbing to a 13-3 loss.

The Crusader’s hope to continue that line of improvement next year, but will do so without Garrison and Lyle, both having graduated.

The team will rely on players like Shelp and Borchardt. Shelp struggled through injuries but remains one of the best overall players after averaging .294 and leading the team in strikeouts (30) and ERA (6.03).

Borchardt, another valuable utility player, was a reliable fielder and pitcher throughout the season. Borchardt became the top pitcher and logged the most innings when Shelp struggled through injuries.

Coach Garrison will need that leadership from returning players to continue the development of the team if they hope to move past North Central next spring.

Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)

WATERTOWN, Wis. – Wisconsin Lutheran hammered out 15-0 and 10-3 victories over the Crusaders on Saturday afternoon to close out the Maranatha baseball season.

Junior pitcher Joel Borchardt (Watertown, Wis.) held the Warriors to one run and two hits in four innings, but an avalanche of 10 runs came in the fifth inning.

Maranatha had one hit in the game and Borchardt took the loss after being relieved by Derek Funkhouser (Paris, Ill.).

Jason Garrison (3-5) and the Crusaders atoned for game one, outhitting the Warriors 12-10, but coming up short on the scoreboard.

Wisconsin Lutheran pulled out in front for a 3-0 lead in the third inning, but Tim Shelp’s RBI single cut the deficit to 3-2 in the bottom of the inning.

The Warriors picked up insurance runs in the fourth and fifth, as Maranatha scored their third run on a ground-out by Chris Von Holt (Stony Point, N.Y.) to score Shelp.

The defense kept the Crusaders in the game thanks the glove of senior outfielder Nathan Lyle (Oregon, Wis.).

Lyle would finish his college career with several highlight catches and went 2-4 from the plate.

Junior pitcher Craig Lawson (Independence, Mo.) pitched six innings, allowing five hits and seven runs.

Shelp came in relief for Lawson, fanning four batters and allowing three hits and three runs.

Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)

WATERTOWN, Wis. – Maranatha’s offense struggled on Tuesday afternoon, losing 10-1 and 12-0 and coming away with four hits combined in both games.

The Cougars captured the 2-0 lead in the first inning, but Maranatha responded with a triple by Autumn Peotter (Waupaca, Wis.) and an advance to home on the throw.

From there on out it was all Cougars, who ended the game with 10 hits and handed freshman Jana Dempsey (Bath, Mich.) the loss.

Dempsey pitched three innings, allowing three hits and three runs and was replaced by Rachel Ryan (Nampa, Idaho).

Peotter finished 1-3 from the plate with an RBI.

Concordia posted five runs in the second inning of game two and Concordia held Maranatha to one hit by sophomore infielder Laci Peterson (Chillicothe, Ill.).

Ryan pitched five innings, allowing 12 hits and 12 runs for the loss.

The Crusaders finish the season 7-29 overall.

Keith Salscheider counts himself among them.

“My pro career ended when I got two concussions about 4 ½ months apart from getting hit in the head by elbows,” Maranatha’s new men’s basketball coach said. “That was a pretty clear indication God was leading me out of it.”

Salscheider, 32, retired as a player in the summer of 2009. Coaching seemed the most logical way for him to pass on the practical and spiritual lessons learned while playing minor league professional basketball across the U.S. and around the world.

“I wanted to put all those experiences to good use somehow,” Salschedier said. “Coaching was an obvious way to do that.”

Maranatha’s players will now become the beneficiary of that knowledge.

Salscheider is somewhat familiar with his new team from having coached against it—he spent the 2011-12 season as an assistant coach at Northern Athletics Conference foe Edgewood College. Coaching is also in his blood. His father, Karl, is the winningest coach (147 victories) in Bemidji State University’s men’s basketball history. Karl Salscheider remains a health professor at that college.

“The BSU gymnasium was on the other side of our house,” Keith Salscheider recalled. “I went to practice every day. Those players were my heroes.”

The Salscheider family also spent plenty of non-gym time at Faith Baptist Church in Bemidji, where Keith accepted Christ at age 6. His younger brothers played for Maranatha and his younger sister is employed by the College as a graphic artist.

“Give my parents a lot of credit; they modeled the behavior they talked about,” Salscheider said. “Because of that, when I left home, my faith was my own. It was never something my parents forced us into. We just saw them live it every day.”

Salschedier earned a Bachelor of Science degree in sport management and is pursuing a master’s degree in athletic administration. His college career included stops at Liberty University, St. Cloud State (MN) and Christian Heritage College (CA), now San Diego Christian College, where he was a first-team All-America selection by the National Christian College Athletic Association.

His professional basketball career began with two years in Australia, where he averaged 28.5 and 23 points per game. He also played professionally in Denmark and New Zealand. Salscheider  was closest to making an NBA roster in 2007-08 when he averaged 17 points per game and shot 45 percent from 3-point range for the Great Falls (MT) Explorers of the Continental Basketball Association. He played in the CBA and the NBA Developmental League from 2005-08.

“I realized the odds were against (the NBA) when I was playing as well as anybody in the league and still didn’t get called up,” Salschedier said. “I remember thinking, ‘I don’t know if I can play much better than this.’ ”

Salscheider’s first stop as a head coach will be an interesting challenge. The Crusaders were 5-22 last winter, but were competitive with the top teams in the conference and will return their entire roster next season.

“I think Maranatha is looking for a unique student-athlete, which makes the recruiting pool a little bit smaller, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do well,” Salscheider said. “I’m no magician, but there are little things that sometimes go unnoticed, things I’ve gathered over the years. These players will be doing a lot of things they’re not used to. It’s going to be different, but it’s going to be exciting.”

Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)

AURORA, Ill. – The powerhouse #2 Aurora Spartans, steamrolled their way to 10-0 scores in each game of a doubleheader win over the Crusaders on Saturday afternoon.

The Spartans reeled off four runs in the first inning and held Maranatha to three hits in the game as Nathan Lyle (Oregon, Wis.) and Andy Timblin (Muscoda, Wis.) each went 1-2.

Junior Craig Lawson (Independence, Mo.) pitched 6.2 innings, allowing 12 hits and 10 runs for the loss.

Aurora’s Stephen Sitterly frustrated the Crusader offense in game two, holding the team to two hits while striking out 10 batters in the process.

Sophomore Jeremy Mattson took the loss after pitching two innings and was relieved by Garett Ordway (Pensacola, Fla.), who pitched four effective innings, holding the Spartans to three hits while striking out one.

Michael Dean (Brookfield, Wis.) and Christ Von Holt (Stony Point, N.Y.) each had a hit in the game.

Maranatha faces Wisconsin Lutheran in their season finale at home on Saturday, May 5 at 12:00 p.m.

Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)

WATERTOWN, Wis. – Although the Regents pulled off 10-2 and 7-5 victories, Maranatha pushed their opponents to the limit on Friday evening in a tight game two loss.

In game one, Rockford jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, but Marantha’s Susie Prusak (Leesburg, Va.) and Rosa Lewis (Yates City, Ill.) each had doubles to draw the game even with the Regents.

Freshman pitcher Jana Dempsey (Bath, Mich.) could only hold Rockford back for so long as the Regents piled on six runs in the fifth inning to effectively put the game out of reach.

Dempsey pitched five innings, allowing 13 hits and 10 runs whiles striking out two.

Prusak and Lewis each finished 1-2 from the plate.

Game two was a tug-of-war with Maranatha taking the first pull in a three-run first inning.

The Regents chipped away at a 4-0 deficit later on to trail 4-2 in the fourth inning and waited until the sixth inning to capture a slim 5-4 lead.

Lewis scored the tying run in the bottom of the sixth on an error by the right fielder.

A scoreless seventh forced the game into extra innings where Rockford snatched a two-run lead from which Maranatha could never recover.

Sophomore pitcher Rachel Ryan (Nampa, Idaho) pitched eight innings, allowing 15 hits and seven runs with a strikeout.

The Crusaders finish on Saturday at home against Concordia Chicago at 12:00 p.m.