But the expected scenario played out on the softball diamond on Tuesday. Vying at Holmberg Field, MACA very predictably dismantled the Thunder Hawks of Montevideo. So the score was 10-0 in five innings.
Cate Kehoe, who was sidelined from athletics due to injury for much of the academic year, brought cheers with a three-run "dinger." In the pitching circle: Nora Boyle. Boyle pitched all five as the Tigers debuted in the post-season. She set down nine T-Hawk batters on strikes. Her hits allowed: a mere two.
Kehoe's big round-tripper stood out in the Tigers' knockout punch rally of the second inning: seven runs coming in. The boxscore shows Kortney Sanasack with two RBIs. Fielding miscues hurt the T-Hawk cause. These led to seven of our runs being unearned.
Were the fans at Holmberg Field satisfied with their viewing angles for the game? Did the fans remember to bring their own chairs? Only the middle portion of the bleachers behind home plate afford a view of the whole field. From the sides of the field, it's a mediocre experience.
Tigers 7, Litchfield 3
On to Game 2 of the day. That's how the sub-section is structured. Stamina and depth needed. Well, the Tigers had no problem. They rallied for four runs in the fifth inning in the process of turning back those green Dragons of Litchfield. So the score was 7-3 as MACA climbed again.
Now it was Haley Kill showcased in pitching. Her work spanned 6.1 innings. She struck out five. Nora Boyle pitched for the last two outs. Kill had an offensive role too. She drove in two runs with a double, helping the lead get up to 7-0. The RBI column also included Boyle, Kehoe and Sanasack.
The Tuesday success pushed the orange and black won-lost mark up to 19-2. Action will continue away from home. I assume that accommodations for fans will be better in Marshall. Such a long trip - too bad for the MACA fans. But it happens often in section-level action for MACA teams. Can we ever see a shift north?
The Tigers will next play Jackson County Central. We're into that phase where historically, as if by magic incantation, the Tigers can get mowed down by teams from southern Minnesota. Can the Tigers break the hex this year?
Game-time is 11 a.m. Saturday in Marshall. I have always thought it strange that softball teams play through the hallowed weekend of Memorial Day. But that's the tradition.
Baseball: doubleheader setback
I almost feel happy about this: 'Waska takes a twin bill at the expense of our Tigers. Minnewaska has had extremely tough sledding in boys athletics this academic year. It got so bad I wrote a special post about it. In the spring, some relief has come for Laker country. So the Lakers swept our Tigers in a Tuesday baseball doubleheader at 'Waska. Scores were 5-1 and 4-2.
The field at 'Waska has the "Marthaler" name. There the 'Waska fans cheered PJ Johnson pitching solidly for six innings in Game 1, the 5-1 success for the Lakers. Johnson was backed by Dylan Alexander who had two hits and an RBI.
The Tigers' Trevor Buss rapped two hits. Our Drew Storck looked good in his three innings of pitching: no runs scored vs. him. He fanned five.
Moving on to the second game, we see Noah Jensen hitting a home run for the victorious Lakers, 4-2 score. On the mound for the victor was Austin Panitzke: a complete game job.
Things are going so well for 'Waska in baseball, they have a share of the WCC title.
The losing pitcher was Alex Asmus with a six-inning appearance. Our offense was highlighted by Owen Anderson with two hits and two RBIs. We're still over .500. We came out of the day at 11-9 so optimism should be high for the post-season. I especially root for Drew Storck, son of my old newspaper co-worker Heather.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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