Prep athletes of the week: Chanhassen softball leader at it again

Feels like we've done this before.

The 2016 season concluded with the versatile Olson leading the Storm to the Class 4A team championship. The 2017 season has opened with the senior pitcher/shortstop guiding the Storm to two victories in which they outscored their opponents by a combined 31-0.

Olson went 6-for-7 at the plate with two doubles, three runs scored and 6 RBI. She also pitched three innings – both games were called early due to the mercy rule – allowed just one hit and struck out eight.

Olson said after Chanhassen's season-opening 19-0 victory over Cooper that back-to-back state titles is the goal. The team knows what it takes to win a championship, but one aspect to the season trumps all.

"Going out on top is important, but the most important thing is just having fun," she said "It's our senior year, our last one. We just want to take it all in and have fun."

The junior took first place at the 32-team Bunker Hills Invitational last Thursday, shooting a two-under-par 70 to top a 198-golfer field. Dittrich, who finished tied for 20th in the Class 3A state tournament last June, is ranked No. 37 by the Minnesota Golf Association.

CAM KLINE

The Tigers won two of three games, with the senior pitcher picking up victories in both. He allowed one run in 5⅔ innings – and went 3-for-3 at the plate – in a 3-2 victory over DeLaSalle. He followed up with a three-hitter with 10 strikeouts in a 2-0 victory over Edison.

A seasoned veteran despite being an eighth-grader, Reeck tallied a career-high five goals and added an assist in a season-opening 11-8 victory over No. 3-ranked Stillwater. She closed out the 2016 season by scoring two goals in five of her last six games.

The sophomore lefthander is already 3-0 on the season with a 1.47 ERA and 32 strikeouts. Last week he tossed a gem in an 8-0 shutout of Columbia Heights, giving up just three hits and striking out 10 batters.

In a two-game stretch, the junior infielder collected base hits in seven consecutive at-bats. She went 3-for-3 with three runs scored and two doubles in a 15-0 romp over Mahtomedi, and was 4-for-4 with two RBI in an 11-1 victory over Simley.

JIM PAULSEN