By By SCOTT NOVAK / Niles Daily Star
NILES – It will be a battle of softball giants today at East Kentwood.
Top-ranked Niles will take on Wyoming Rogers at 3 p.m. with the winner advancing to the Division 2 state semifinals on Friday afternoon at 1:30 p.m.
While Niles will be playing in its first quarterfinal, Wyoming Rogers is no stranger to this stage of the state tournament.
Rogers had won four state championships overall and has reached the finals five times since 1996. Wyoming won the 2005 championship with a 6-1 victory over Trenton.
That year, Rogers edged Dowagiac 1-0 in extra innings in the quarterfinals.
Niles defeated Coloma (1-0 in eight innings) and Otsego (7-1) to advance to the quarterfinals.
Wyoming Rogers defeated Grand Rapids Christian (17-3) in the semifinals and then edged Unity Christian in the title game 2-1.
"They are a well coached team and they have a nice pitcher," Niles coach Gary Collins said of Wyoming Rogers. "They play the short game. They remind me a lot of Lakeshore."
Collins isn't worried about his team not having played in a quarterfinal game before.
"I don't think is makes any difference at all," he said. "Every team is different. I think our kids are ready to play. Our team is pretty low key. They don't get over excited about wins. I think they have the right attitude."
Collins said that as usual, pitching and defense will be the key, along with getting a couple of runs early.
Brandywine vs. Lansing Catholic
The top-ranked Bobcats will face No. 4 ranked Lansing Catholic today at 5 p.m. at C.O. Brown Stadium at Bailey Park in Battle Creek.
The Bobcats earned a measure of revenge on Saturday as it defeated Kalamazoo Christian via the mercy rule. It was the Comets that ended Brandywine's run in 2007 with a 10-0 victory in the regional semifinals.
Lansing Catholic comes into today's game with a 30-7 overall record. Lansing defeated Olivet in the semifinals 6-5 and then Wyoming Lee in the title game 13-4.
In both games Lansing rallied from a three-run deficit.
Brandywine and Lansing Catholic have both won a state title. The Bobcats' came in 1987 and the Cougars' in 1996.
Senior Jake Harris (8-3, 1.98 ERA) will get the starting nod today according to Bobcats' coach David Sidenbender, who returns to Brown Stadium for the first time since he was a player at Southwestern Michigan College in the early 1990s.
"He's a senior and he wanted the ball," Sidenbender said of Harris. "He's got quite a bit of experience, so that's who we are going with."
Sidenbender feels that his team is hungry to build on the success of this season.
The Bobcats won a share of the Lakeland Conference championship and its second straight district title.
Getting its revenge on Kalamazoo Christian on Saturday only fueled the desire to extend their season.
"I don't get the feeling that we're satisfied," he said. "We didn't have a huge celebration. We have loftier goals. The kids told me that winning the regional was nice, but that we have three more steps to take."