Drazkowski named Coulee Player of the Year after breakout spring

Already a first-team all-conference player at shortstop as a freshman, Arcadia sophomore Tatum Drazkowski made the switch to catcher to help out the team this spring. Not only did she thrive in the new role to give the Raiders a steady presence behind the plate — she bloomed further into one of the best softball players in the Coulee region.

Drazkowski’s breakout campaign resulted in her being named the 2025 Coulee Conference Player of the Year at the end of the season. Drazkowski was a nightmare for opposing pitchers, hitting .558 on the year (including a .622 batting average in conference play) with an OPS of 1.393, 11 doubles, five triples, 33 RBIs and an eye-popping 52 stolen bases in 26 games.

She was joined among the conference’s top honorees by West Salem junior Josie Brudos, who was named the Coulee Pitcher of the Year.

“I was very happy (Drazkowski) was named player of the year. Honestly, Tatum is one of the best players in the area, no doubt about it. Josie Brudos from West Salem is also one of the best players around,” said Arcadia head coach Dave Bjorge. “So, I feel like it was justified that (Brudos) was pitcher of the year and Tatum was player of the year because I do feel they are the two best players in the conference.”

Joining Drazkowski on the All-Coulee first team were a pair of her Arcadia teammates: senior Kaitlyn Bremer and sophomore Layna Wozney. Bremer was previously a first-team selection as a junior and landed on the second team as a sophomore.

This spring, Wozey posted a .421/.553/.582 slash line with 39 steals, 21 RBIs and five doubles. Bremer finished with a .342/.412/.582 slash line and recorded 30 stolen bases, 24 RBIs, six doubles and five triples. In the circle, Bremer went 11-6 with a 4.03 ERA and 112 strikeouts in 120 innings pitched.

Like the Raiders, a trio of Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau players found their way onto the all-conference first team: seniors Kinley Anderson and Halene De Jager and freshman Alexis Ouellette.

Anderson and De Jager were both first-team honorees a year ago as well, with De Jager also being picked to the second team in 2023.

Ouellette made a big splash in her debut season of high school softball, batting .356 with a 1.172 OPS. She smacked five home runs and 10 doubles, registered a .753 slugging percentage and tied for the team lead with 30 RBIs.

De Jager finished the season with a slash line of .400/.500/.507 and 13 RBIs. She also recorded team highs with 24 stolen bases and 30 runs scored. In the pitching circle, she posted a 10-5 record with a 3.28 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 83 1/3 innings.

Anderson slashed .383/.444/.469 with 15 RBIs and 19 runs scored. Despite tying for the team lead with 90 plate appearances, she struck out only six times.

The other members of the 2025 All-Coulee first team were Brudos and senior Megan Johnson of West Salem and both senior Julia Sill and junior Rylee Weber representing Onalaska Luther.

Landing on the all-conference second team were G-E-T seniors Caroline Mack and Ellie Cox along with Arcadia sophomore Amaya Schlesser. They were joined by Black River Falls senior Rylea Lindow, Viroqua senior Emily Berra, Viroqua junior Emily Hubatch, West Salem seniors Maclaine Heilman and Makinlee Marshall, West Salem freshman Brooklyn Lee and Westby junior Emma Kirner.

In 2024, Mack was a first-team selection, Schlesser was a second-team pick and Cox was an honorable mention.

The list of All-Coulee honorable mentions for this spring featured Arcadia juniors Tessah Ely and Kiley Fitzpatrick, G-E-T freshman Kennedy Scow, Luther seniors Kayla Schultz and Amanda Yonkovich, Viroqua sophomore Megan Brendel, West Salem sophomore Kylie Elsen and Westby junior Ava Berg.

West Salem won the Coulee title with an 11-1 league record and had the best postseason run of any team in the conference, advancing to a Division Two sectional final.