News File Photo Alpena's Jade Schultz throws a pitch during a game against Petoskey earlier this season. Schultz and the Wildcats will host a Division 1 district today and open district play against Marquette at 11 a.m.

For the past five seasons as the calendar turns to June and district play begins, one constant has rung true for the Alpena softball team.

At some point the Wildcats will play Marquette.

For years, the two teams have traded district crowns and for the last five seasons the Wildcats and the Redettes have met in the district final. In that span, Alpena holds a 3-2 edge but Marquette has gotten the upper hand in the last two seasons, however, including last year’s 1-0 win.

With home field advantage for the first time since 2013, the Wildcats are hoping to reverse their recent luck against the Redettes this time around. But instead of a district final matchup, the two teams will play each other in a Division 1 district semifinal at 11 a.m. today.

“We’re excited that it’s in Alpena and we’re hoping for a big crowd,” Alpena coach Paul Marwede said. “They throw the ball well and they’ve had the upper hand on us the last couple years and we’re looking to turn the tables.”

Traverse City West will play Traverse City Central in the other semifinal at 1 p.m.

The Wildcats have all the elements of a successful team: good pitching led by freshman Jade Schultz, solid defense on a roster that features eight players with at least two years of experience and a lineup that can hit for extra bases and home runs and plays heads-up ball on the basepaths.

But for his team’s talent, Marwede is encouraged by his team’s play in recent weeks. After going 4-2 at the Michigan Stars Tournament last month, the Wildcats have gone 13-1 since then. It’s the sort of momentum teams hope to have when the postseason begins and Marwede likes what he’s seen from the Wildcats as of late.

“We’re 31-7 and we’ve looked pretty good over our last 20 (games),” Marwede said. “You break the season in two halves. First half of the season we played well and the second half of the season, we’ve played extremely well.”

In Hillman, three of the top 10 teams in Class D will meet Saturday in a Division 4 district that traditionally has seen high quality, exciting softball. Ninth-ranked Onaway will play No. 10 Hillman at 10 a.m. and No. 4 Rogers City and Johannesburg-Lewiston will meet at noon.

Since 2012, the Rogers City has walked away from districts with a championship and the Hurons have the talent and experience this season to come away with a sixth straight title. But the Hurons aren’t overlooking their district opponents.

Onaway played the Hurons close in a game in April and Hillman was able to score multiple runs against the Hurons last month despite the Hurons sweeping a doubleheader.

“Softball in Northern Michigan is really strong. There’s a lot of good teams and a lot talent and the teams are well coached and they play hard,” Rogers City coach Karl Grambau said. “It’s going to be fun on Saturday and it’s going to take a lot of effort to win that district.”

The Hurons lost just two regulars from last year’s quarterfinal run and have once again shown the ability to hit for average and power, play solid defense and beat opponents with good pitching.

“We like to have fun when we play and we do have a lot of fun. We just want to try to make the plays on defense, try to get some timely hits and get some good pitching and good catching,” Grambau said. “We’re going to play hard and represent Rogers City and our school and our community.”

Onaway similarly lost only a few players to graduation and has used the experience gained last season to develop further and it’s paid off as the Cardinals won more than 20 games in the regular season.

With an experienced lineup and a pair of veteran pitchers, Hillman has been among the best teams in the area all season and will be looking to advance to the district final for the first time since 2015.

In Lincoln, Alcona will be looking to win its first district title since 2015. The Tigers will play Whittemore-Prescott at noon Saturday and Mio and Au Gres will play at 10 a.m.

James Andersen can be reached via email at sports@thealpenanews.com or by phone at 358-5694. Follow James on Twitter @ja_alpenanews.