All-RTC4 softball: ‘Day’ game: Valley’s Bussard is Player of Year

Val T.
Jul 18
5 min read

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

**RTC4 Softball Player of the Year Dalynne Bussard**

The All-RTC4 softball team is loaded with more good players than we know what to do with.

There are six different pitchers and five different catchers that we like, and we have not gotten to the infield or the outfield yet.

So we might put some familiar players in some unfamiliar spots just to recognize as many players as possible on the first team.

As for our RTC4 Player of the Year, our pick is Tippecanoe Valley’s Dalynne Bussard, a two-way threat as both a hitter and a pitcher. No area player meant as much to her team as Bussard meant to hers, and she really brought along a young team and got them within a win of a sectional title.

There are very few players that have impacted the Valley softball program the way she has, and she still has one more year to go.

While Bussard stood out among area players, Rochester was the standout team in the area. They won their second straight sectional, recovering from a slow start to the season. Their offensive versatility – they could outslug teams but they also had a speed game – made them hard to defend, and they had a standout pitcher in Bria Rensberger.

We would like to thank area coaches for sending us their scores and statistics and for sharing their insights with us. The quality of coaching is at a high level, and as a result, the competition within the area is at a high level, and all we hear is how many young girls are playing on travel and all-star teams that will stock the rosters of the future.

This list is ours and ours alone, and we take full responsibility for it.

All-RTC4 team

Bria Rensberger Lois Layer

Pitchers

Dalynne Bussard (Tippecanoe Valley) (Player of the Year) – Bussard went 7-6 with a 1.91 ERA in the circle, and she also hit .500 with four homers and 22 RBIs and a 1.306 OPS. She gave up eight homers, which is a bit high, but she also had 172 strikeouts in 106 ⅓ innings.
Bria Rensberger (Rochester) – Rensberger is a warrior in the circle, going 18-2 with a 1.75 ERA and also striking out 221 batters in 124 ⅓ innings. She threw harder and with more movement as compared to her freshman year. Offensively, she was much improved as well, hitting .366 with three homers and 32 RBIs and a 1.054 OPS.
Lois Layer (Pioneer) – Layer had 57 hits to lead all-area players, and she was also second on Pioneer’s team with 29 RBIs. She also went 14-5 with a 1.26 ERA in the circle, and she fanned 132 while walking just 33 in 122 innings.

Corrin Combs Gracie Milam Jadyn Field

Catchers

Corrin Combs (Winamac) – Combs was lethal at the plate and always seemed to raise her game when there were teammates on base. She hit .500 with five homers and 27 RBIs and a 1.276 OPS, and she had to catch two different pitchers all season while behind the plate. She was quite likely the area’s best team leader.
Gracie Milam (Culver) – Milam did for Culver what Combs did for Winamac. She was a great clutch hitter and racked up a /478 batting average with two homers and 21 RBIs and a 1.333 OPS.
Jadyn Field (Rochester) – We were not quite sure what to expect from Field after she tore her ACL in the summer of 2024. She did not start catching full games until around May or so, but she improved her framing while hitting .506 with three homers and 24 RBIs. And her postseason hitting – she hit Rochester’s biggest homer of the season against Oak Hill in the sectional semifinals and also more than held her own against Rossville stud Avery Layton in the regional – makes you wonder if she can get even better.

Top: Aubrey Wilson Addison Kennell Aiden Molebash

Bottom: Mylie Rude Mackaylie Costello Grace Roth

Infielders

Aubrey Wilson (Rochester) – Wilson hit .488 with one homer and 36 RBIs and a 1.228 OPS. She also stole 23 bases. Wilson is not so much a slugger as she is someone with a level swing who pounds the ball seemingly every time up.
Addison Kennell (Pioneer) – We understand Kennell played catcher quite a bit, but she played some first base, and we wanted to have her .421 batting average and 35 RBIs in our lineup. Catcher was the big question mark at the start of the year for the Lady Panthers, and Kennell, a sophomore, answered it.
Aiden Molebash (Culver) – Again, we are going to use some creative license and put Molebash, a sophomore, on our infield, though she was obviously one of the top pitchers in our area. Molebash struck out 144 and walked just 26 in 104 innings. At the plate, she hit .412 with 25 RBIs.
Myli Rude (Caston) – Caston got their Rude awakening from this junior first baseman, who benefitted from more playing time after the large Class of 2024 graduated. She hit .338 with four homers and 18 RBIs and a 1.026 OPS.
Averi Layer (Pioneer) – Layer, a freshman, hit .455 with one homer and 17 RBIs, and her skill set made her look like the next great Pioneer player that they have been producing for generations. It would appear that Pioneer has their shortstop through the 2028 season.
Mackaylie Costello (Tippecanoe Valley) – Costello hit .338 with two homers, 17 RBIs and a .983 OPS as a senior shortstop.
Grace Roth (Winamac) – Roth, a freshman, gave an energy boost to the Lady Warrior lineup at second base, hitting .414 and adding nine extra-base hits.

Aubrey Miller Darah Strasser Makayla Werner Abigayle Zehner

Outfielders

Aubrey Miller (Rochester) – Those who wondered what Miller would look like if she cut down on her strikeouts found out this year, and she menaced opposing teams. She hit .409 with a .946 OPS, and she was one of the state’s top base stealers with 38 while striking out only 13 times.
Makayla Werner (Winamac) – Werner was the table setter in the Winamac lineup and hit .326 with 14 RBIs. She stole 13 of her team’s 26 bases, and she was a fantastic defensive center fielder.
Abigayle Zehner (Culver) – Zehner hit .474 with two homers and 25 RBIs and a 1.316 OPS. She is a great athlete who combined speed and power and had a team-high 19 stolen bases.
Adrianna Hall (Winamac) – Hall with .299 with 14 RBIs, and she also went 8-1 with a 2.97 ERA in the circle in 24 appearances. She was Winamac’s closer, busting opposing right-handed hitters in on their hands after entering games in the fifth or sixth inning.
Ivy Stackhouse (Argos) – Stanhouse hit .491 with a 1.275 OPS and was simply somebody we had to have on our first team even though she did not play much outfield.
Darah Strasser (Rochester) – How good was Rochester’s lineup? Strasser had a 1.070 OPS, and she typically hit ninth in the batting order. She had surprising power and was a sure-handed center fielder.
Natalie Warner (Caston) – Warner hit .369 with 19 RBIs and a 1.031 OPS while seeing time all over the diamond, including the outfield.