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Edition:
September 02, 2010
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SCHOOL/SPORTS
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Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Wolf Lake, Dent, Fergus Falls, Midway advance in region
Area squads begin Region 14C, 16C tourney; Vergas Loons out
 | | Shane Hendrickson pitched all seven innings of Wolf Lake's 13-2 victory over rival Midway Sunday afternoon at the Pack's lakeside ballpark. The Snurdbirds scored two unearned runs in the final inning to avoid being blanked. In the background is third baseman Tom Juberian. Photo by John W. Dermody |
• by John W. Dermody
Over the next two weeks, baseball action will become even more intense as playoff survivors move into Region 14C and 16C tournament play.
Teams from the Hi-10, Countryside, Lake and Pine, and Resorters Leagues will play games Friday and Saturday at venues ranging from Pelican Rapids, Perham, New York Mills and Dent in the immediate area, but there will also be contests in Clarissa and Menahga.
Vergas lost its quest for a tourney berth Wednesday when the Loons were knocked off by Hawley, 3-0, but no information about the game was available.
Thus, the three clubs qualifying for Region 16C are the Hawks, Fergus Falls and the Dent Wildcats.
Dent defeated the FF Canes in the title battle Sunday 6-4. In an earlier scuffle, Fergus nipped Hawley 9-8.
In the Hi-10, Detroit Lakes also lost a midweek contest to Bluffton, 4-1. The Braves qualify for Region 16C, along with Wadena-Deer Creek's Shockers and the Bertha Blazers. WDC beat Bertha 2-0 for the championship Sunday after the Blazers had thrashed Bluffton 12-2.
Recent tournament contestants like the DL Angels, Perham's Pirates and the Loons will be watching this time.
At Wolf Lake Sunday afternoon, the Wolf Pack jumped out to a big lead by scoring eight runs in the first inning, then cruised to a 13-2 win over Midway in seven frames. Shane Hendrickson pitched the win for the Pack.
The other team from the Lake and Pine North will be the Red Eye Country Boys, in as the wild card squad.
In the Lake and Pine South, the three qualifiers are the Nisswa Lightning, the Nimrod Gnats and the Verndale Bison.
The Resorters League will send just four teams. In the West Division, the qualifiers were the Brandon-Evansville Blue Dogs and the Alexandria Senators. The East Division will send the Clarissa Flyers and the Carlos Cougars.
Games begin Friday
In Region 14C, all kickoff games tomorrow will be at 8 p.m. The slate: Carlos vs. Bluffton at Clarissa; Nisswa vs. Bertha at Menahga; Nimrod vs. Clarissa at Perham; and WDC vs. Verndale at New York Mills. Winners will play at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday at New York Mills.
In Region 16C, games are not scheduled until early Saturday, but teams will play twice in the double-elimination format that day.
At 11 a.m., the Dent Wildcats will play Red Eye at Pelican Rapids, while Wolf Lake will challenge the Alex Senators at Dent.
At 2 p.m., the B-E Blue Dogs will battle the Hawley Hawks at Pelican Rapids, and the Midway Snurdbirds will go against Fergus Falls at the Dent ballpark.
The respective winners will play in Perham at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday evening, with the final first round game involving winners Sunday. Meanwhile, in the losers bracket, teams will attempt to work their way back to positions where they can compete against the early winners.
First and second place finishers will advance to the state amateur tournament later this month through Labor Day.
Wolf Pack has easy win
Midway and Wolf Lake had an unusual game Sunday at the Pack's playground - it was a blowout.
As noted earlier, the score was 13-2 and the game was halted after seven frames due to the 10-run rule. With eight tallies in the 1st inning and five more in the 2nd, Wolf Lake overwhelmed the Snurdbirds. The visitors managed to scuffle for two runs in the top of the 7th, mainly because of sloppy play by the Pack.
In the first stanza, Jack Juberian and Boone Caughey had two-run singles as the home crew garnered seven runs and sent 13 batters to the plate.
After snuffing a threat by the Birds in the second, the Wolf Pack batted around again in its half of the inning, with three hits and three walks contributing to five counters. The highlight was Luther Kangas' two-out bases clearing double.
Kangas and Tom Juberian each had three hits, while Jack Juberian had a pair, with three ribbees. Kangas had four RBIs. The Wolf Pack improved its season mark to 17-1.
Jake Lund and Brad Lusti each had two hits for Midway, as the team record dropped to 21-12.
Hendrickson allowed seven hits while going the route for the Pack. The losing pitcher was Tony Meech.
Wolf Lake swept the games against its big rival, going 4-0, but the two teams could meet again in the Region 16C Tournament.
Midway 000 000 2 - 2 - 7 - 1
Wolf Lake 850 000 X - 13 - 11 - 2
WP - Shane Hendrickson; LP - Tony Meech.
Fergus Falls beats Hawks
The Hurricanes finished in the runner-up spot in the CL playoffs, after being the regular season champ with a 15-2 record.
The Fergus club edged Hawley 9-8 Saturday in a nail-biter, with the Hawks becoming the wild card team from the Countryside loop.
Subsequently, however, the Canes dropped another game to the Dent Wildcats 6-4 Sunday.
Alex Conboy led the winners with three hits, including a double and four runs batted in. Ben Brimhall scored four times without a safety, but then walked three times and got hit by a pitch. Nick Lewis chipped in with a homer, two walks, two runs and a pair of ribbees. Derek Hansen also had a home run.
Brady Harms was 4-5 for Hawley, while Andrew Van Havermat was 3-5 and Andy Erickson was 3-5.
After closing to within 9-8 after scoring four times in the top of the 8th inning, the Hawks loaded the bases in the 9th frame...but failed to score. The visitors had a one-out single, then moved a hitter to first on a wild pitch strike out situation and a two-out walk loaded the pillows before a game-ending ground out.
The Hawks left 15 runners stranded, while Fergus had a dozen players left on base.
The Hurricanes will open Region 16C action Saturday at 2 p.m. against Midway at Dent. Meanwhile, the other area team, the Dent Wildcats, will kick off their hopes with an 11 a.m. contest with Red Eye at Pelican Rapids.
Hawley 030 100 040 - 8 - 12 - 3 LOB 15
Fergus 102 013 20X - 9 - 10 - 4 LOB 12
WP - Casey Kowalski; LP - Justin Graafsgard.
Dent tips Fergus again
The Wildcats, just as they did a few days earlier in the CL playoffs, put another "L" on the Hurricanes Sunday afternoon at Legion Field in Fergus Falls.
The Canes jumped to 2-1 and 3-2 leads, but Dent battled back to tie the game in the 4th inning, then scored a pair of runs in the 6th which proved to be enough for the Cats to hold on.
Brock Collins hurled the win, while Jamie Jacklitch took the loss for Fergus. Both pitchers were effective, as Collins fanned 10 and Jacklitch whiffed nine.
For Fergus Falls, Matt Brekke, Erik Rohlfs and Matt Mithaugen each had a pair of hits. The latter had a double.
Timely hits did not always occur, as both teams stranded a bunch of runners - Dent 12, and the Canes 9.
The Wildcats were led by Brandon Fritz, Steve Branby and Isaac Stoll, each with two hits. Stoll had a triple, two walks and scored twice. Fritz had a pair of ribbees and Branby smacked a double.
As CL playoff champ, Dent drafted Adam Johnson from Pelican Rapids, and the runner-up Canes drafted A. J. Bunkowske from Vergas. Each team was to select one more draftee from teams not making the tournament. Hawley had yet to announce either of its draft selections.
Dent Wildcats 101 102 010 - 6 - 10 - 2 LOB 12
Fergus Canes 111 000 010 - 4 - 9 - 2 LOB 9
WP - Brock Collins; LP - Jamie Jacklitch.
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