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AMATEUR

Spring 2016

Published by:

Page 2

May 4, 2016

Amateur baseball a fortunate find for Elliott


by HERMAN LENSING Baseball career, stood
STAFF WRITER
out in the amateur circuit

Tom Elliott considers


himself a fairly fortunate
sports reporter.
A lover of baseball, he
found a job that lets him
report on baseball at all
levels. He has fondness for
the play, history and tradition of amateur baseball in
central Minnesota.
It is a big deal in
Stearns County, he said
Feb. 10 at a presentation
on amateur baseball in
Stearns County and St.
Cloud. I started writing
with the St. Cloud Times in
1982.
Over the years hes
had contact with some of
the best teams and players to come through central Minnesota. No doubt
his favorite is the 1983 St.
Cloud Saints (now Beaudreaus Bar) state championship team.
We had a continuous
team in St. Cloud after the
1905 team folded at midseason until 1981. Then
came the St. Cloud Beaudreaus Bar Saints, he
said. They may have been
the youngest team to ever
win a state championship.
The oldest player was Jim
Eisenrich. He was 23.
Eisenrich, who went
on to a Major League

that year. He finished the


season as the MVP of the
tournament.
That year he had 22
home runs in 25 games. He
would steal bases standing
up. Ive never seen anyone
like him. He was the best
amateur player Ive ever
seen, said Elliot.
But even with teams
of that caliber, St. Cloud
has never really supported
amateur teams the way it
is supported in the towns
outside the St. Cloud area.
To see that one has to get
outside of St. Cloud, and
not just Cold Spring, Sauk
Rapids or Sartell, but into
the smaller communities
throughout Stearns County. He quickly learned how
to find most diamonds in
the smaller communities.
When getting directions to the ball park, its
almost always the ball diamond is behind the church
and across the street from
the bar. Youd be amazed
how many times thats true
around here, he said.
In those communities,
the ballpark is provided for
the little league, teen and
amateur teams that play. A
Sunday afternoon game is
a combination of athletic
contest, socializing event
and a chance for parochial
bragging. To him, the Stea-

HERMAN LENSING PHOTO

Jim Brick (left) a Lake Henry fan, shared memories of games played at that park with Tom Elliott.

rns County League epitomizes spirit.


The SCL is amazing
to me, he said. The kids
come from the towns they
play in. They have modified the rules somewhat,
but basically the players
have to be within six miles
or they dont play.
The support manifests
itself in more than just
cheering for the teams.
The SCL annually
leads in attendance, he
said. The region they are

in puts out a 150-page program with ads and rosters


The SCL was not the
only league that has attempted to keep the game
local, to some degree. Other leagues have restriction
on distances players can
come from (not as tight
as six miles). His research
showed that at one time
the Central Valley League
did not allow a player with
a St. Cloud address to play
in the league.
Besides Cold Spring,

which has won nine state


titles, other smaller communities in the area have
done well on the state level. While no SCL team has
ever won a state championship (Richmonds runner-up finish in 1998 is
the best SCL finish), some
other smaller local communities in the area have
brought home the championship trophy. Among
them Brooten in 1932,
Regal in 1991, Buckman
in 1996, Watkins in 2001,

Holdingford in 2005 and


Sobieski in 2014.
They all play good
ball, Elliott said. If you
go around they have nice
ball parks.
He also liked how the
rural lifestyle plays a role
in the games. For many
years, many families summer Sundays consisted of
services in the morning
and baseball in the afternoon. In the communities
TOM ELLIOT
Continued on page 5

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May 4, 2016

Page 3

Saints poised to continue


success
The 2016 Elrosa Saints
could very well pick up
where last years team left
off.
Behind possibly the
best pitching staff in the
Stearns County League
North, and a solid corps
of experienced hitters, the
Saints can play with anyone.
The pitching abilities
of Ethan and Aaron Vogt are
well-known and respected.
Both had ERAs well below
3.00 and both proved durable. Last year, Brady Weller
(42 innings) and Austin Imdieke (49 innings) showed
potential that should only
help the team this year.
That pitching combines
with a strong defense to
keep opponents from scoring. Matt Middendorf and
James Kuefler anchor the infield. Kevin Kuefler and Imdieke cover a lot of ground
in the outfield. Steve Mueller is dependable behind the
plate and A.J. Hadley holds
his own in the field.
Offensively, Elrosa offers few surprises to SCL
fans. Veterans Ethan Vogt,
Kevin Kuefler and Cody
Eichers have a reputation
for hitting well and often.
Together they drove in over
60 runs. Getting on ahead
of them are the likes of
Middendorf, James Kuefler
and Matt Schmitz. Pat Illies
remains one of the better
clutch hitters in the line-up.
Besides its veterans,
the Saints have some good

ELROSA SAINTS

young talent, such as former


Regal Eagle Austen Hadley,
and plan to integrate that
talent with their established
veteran corps.
As the team finds the
right mix, it could very well
again have a strong regular
season and play well beyond that.
2015 Records
Overall19-6
League12-1
Playoffs0-2
Regionals1-2
Cody Eichers consistent
and timely hitting resulted
in 12 doubles and 22 RBI
last season.

Elrosa
ab r h bi 2b hr sb ave ip so w l s
era
Aaron Vogt
1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 31.2 20 2 0 4 2.27
A.J. Hadley
92
5
25
11 5
0
0
.272 - - - - - Austin Imdieke 18 3 3 1 0 0 0 .167 49.2 28 5 1 3 2.72
Brady Weller
25 4 4 0 1 0 0 .160 42.0 28 2 2 0 4.93
Brandon Roelike 47
7
11
4 2
0
0
.234 - - - - - Cody Eichers 101
22
37
22
12
2 4
.366 11.2 6 0 0 0 4.63
Derek Wiener 4
2 0
0 0
0
0
.000 - - - - - Edwin Martin
1 3 0 0 0
0 0
.000 2.0 2 0 1 0 18.00
Ethan Vogt
100 21 35 23 5 5 2 .350 86.1 69 10 2 0 1.36
Jacob Weller
0 0 0 0 0
0 0
.000 4.00 5 0 0 0 0
James Kuefler 71
14
20
13 5
0
4
.282 - - - - - Jon Olmscheid 10
6 1
2 0
0
0
.100 - - - - - Kevin Kuefler 98
24
38
21 6
3
6
.388 - - - - - Matt Bauer
3
0 1
1 0
0
0
.333 - - - - - Matt Middendorf
71
21
22
9 2
0
10
.310 - - - - - Matt Schmitz 96
10
27
11 3
1
3
.281 - - - - - Pat Illies
63
6
15
13 5
1
0
.238 - - - - - Ryan Illies
2
1 0
0 0
0
0
.000 - - - - - Ryan Olmscheid 4
3 1
0 0
0
0
.250 - - - - - Steve Mueller 64
5
10
5 0
0
3
.156 - - - - - d-Matt Imdieke 0 0 0 0 0
0 0
.000 2.2 2 1 0 0 3.37
Team
871 158 250 136 46 12 32 .287 230.0 160 20
6 7
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Page 4

May 4, 2016

Farming keeps game in control


Farming
last
year
emerged as the top team in a
tightly-contested SCL-South
race.
Just how competitive
showed as it was topped in
the two-game SCL playoff
format.
The Flames are clearly
a team that believes a team
that does not score, cannot win. When the defense
played well behind its pitchers, particularly Brad Mergen, the Flames were tough
to score on. In league competition, Mergen allowed
only 17 runs, nine earned,
in 64-and-one-third innings.
The team only allowed 74
runs in games against SCL
competition.
The defense is backed
up by an offense that includes the veteran Aaron
Nett, who had 16 hits last
year and a talented youth in
Nick Mergen, who led the

FARMING FLAMES

Craig Kleins infield play and offensive abilities keep the


Flames competitive.
team in hits with 18. Others
who can contribute to the
offense include Brad Mergen and Aaron Eiynck. The
offense should be helped by
the return of Chris Wehseler
to the line-up.
The team, last year,
struggled at times, but the
mistakes they made were
usually because of the youth
of the team. The years ex-

Farming
ab r h bi 2b hr sb ave ip so w l s era
Aaron Eiynck
52 7 14 0 2 0 1 .269 - - - - - Aaron Nett
51 6 16 4 3 1 0 .314 15.1 13 0 1 1 2.93
Brad Mergen
49 3
15
12 3 1 0 .306
64.1 73 6 2 1 1.26
Carey Shay
1 2 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Chad Mergen
20 1 2 1 0 0 0 .100
26.2 10 1 1 0 2.36
Cody Fourre
42 4 7 3 2 0 0 .167 9.1 2 0 2 0
13.50
Craig Klein
58 11 13 12 3 3 2 .224
- - - - -
Dustin Gerards
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Dylan Panek
24 1 5 4 0 0 0 .208 2.1 3 0 2 0
23.15
Eric Schmitt
9 1 3 2 1 0 1 .133 - - - - - Josh Christan
1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Josh Linn
8 1 2 0 0 0 0 .250 - - - - - Kyle Lieser
6 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 - - - - - Kyle Zierden
34 4 6 1 1 1 0 .176 6.2 3 0 0 0
14.85
Matthew Mergen 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Max Carlson
2 0 1 0 0 0 0 .500 - - - - - Mike Kotten
4 1 1 0 0 0 0 .250 - - - - - Mitchell Thelen 50 7 12 0 1 0 0 .240 - - - - - Nick Mergen
52 9 18 9 6 0 1 .346 4.0 5 0 0 0 2.25
Taylor Fourre
38 6 13 5 2 0 3 .342 - - - - - Tylor Schroeder 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Zach Koltes
6 0 1 3 0 0 0 .167 - - - - - Team
512 66 129 56 24 6 9 .252 128.2 109 7 8 2 3.71

perience should have taught


them the need to play a complete game.
The Flames last year got
a taste of being on top. This
year that should be enough
to fuel them as they compete
to play beyond the league.
2015 Records
Overall 
7-8
Nick Rademacher takes
League 
7-6
the
helm
of the Greenwald
Playoff 
0-2
Cubs this year.
It is not an enviable position. The Cubs struggled
through a 0-13 season last
year in the Stearns County
League-North.
We want to be competitive and have fun,
Rademacher said. Everyone has a goal of making
playoffs and going to regions. We have to go game
by game and take it one
game at a time.
The team does have
players to enable them to
break their two-year losing
streak. Although they only
played 13 games last year,
they did have three players
with at least 10 hits. Two
of them, Mitchell Worms
and Ryan Kraemer, have returned to the team.
Tyler
Engelmeyer
and Brandon and Mitchell
Worms have experience
in the outfield. Brandon
Worms was also the pitch-

Cubs have the talent to break the jinx

Hit a HOME RUN!


Good
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all Area
Baseball
Teams!

er Greenwald called on the


most last year and Peter
Lucken had some nice relief
appearances. Andy Ulbricht
showed some potential as a
starter late in the year.
What the team needs
to find is consistency in the
various aspects of the game.
The team had some close
games last year. If they can
find a way to have good performances from beginning
to end, they could well win
a few games this year.
The biggest challenge as a team this year is
getting over the hump and
getting our first win, said
Rademacher. We all need
to stop pressing so hard
and just play the game of
baseball and have fun and
the rest should take care of
themselves.
The team should have
some benefit with the talents
of Ryan Preusser and Tyler
Leukam joining the team.
2015 Record
Overall Record
0-13

Tyler Engelmeyers hitting


and his defense are reasons
he remains in the Cubs
line-up.

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Greenwald
ab r h 2b hr bi sb ave
ip
w
l ip so
era
Mitchell Worms 46 1 10 0 1 7 1
0.217 - - - - - Jordan Prill
43 5 12 2 2 7 0
0.279 - 0 2 6.1 3 14.21
Nick Rademacher 43 5 6 1 0 0 0
0.140 - 0 3
29.0 7 8.38
Ryan Kraemer
42 3 12 2 1 4 1
0.286 - - - - - Tyler Engelmeyer 42 2 7 0 0 0 1
0.167 - 0 0
2.2 5
16.87
Brandon Worms 40 4 9 1 1 2 0
0.225 - 0 5
32.2 29 5.79
Tyler Thomas
35 1 1 0 1 1 0
0.029 - - - - - Kegan Stueve
32 1 6 0 0 0 1
0.188 - - - - - Cody Imdieke
27 5 7 2 0 1 1
0.259 - 0 1
8.1 5 9.72
Peter Lucken
26 2 5 0 0 1 0
0.192 - 0 0
22.1 20 3.63
Doug Imdieke 17 0 2 0 0 0 0
0.118 - - - - - Mike Mayers
12 1 0 0 0 1 0
0.000 - - - - - Andy Ulbricht 12 1 2 1 0 0 0
0.167 - 0 2
9.1 5 6.75
Christian Rohloff 9 0 1 0 0 1 0
0.111 - - - - - Corey Ahrens
5 0 1 1 0 1 0
0.200 - - - - - Alex Lucken
5 1 1 1 0 1 0
0.200 - - - - - Paul Lucken
1 0 0 0 0 0 0
0.000 - - - - - Team
437 32 82 11 6 27 5 0.188
- 0 13
110.2 4 7.16

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May 4, 2016

Page 5

Wins are a tradition at Lake


Henry
At Lake Henry, tradition and talent come together
to consistently create competitive teams.
The Lakers had a solid offense led by the .475
hitting of Josh Kampsen in
2015. He, Matt Quade and
Shane Kampsen each had
over 20 hits last year as the
Lakers stayed in the very
competitive SCL-South race
and eventually reached regions. The team not only hits

well but hits hard, finishing


with 12 home runs last year.
The Lakers showed last
year that they could win under pressure. They won late
in the season to reach the
playoffs, then qualified for
regional and played well
enough to reach state.
The Lake Henry mound
has five players who had at
least 10 innings in their 18
games. Weston Brinkman,
who pitched 66.2 innings,

struck out 50 batters during


the year and earned five
wins.
The Lakers have been
one of the steadiest teams
in the SCL for the past few
years and should be again
this year.
2015 Records
Overall 
10-10
League 
6-7
Playoff 
2-0
Region 
2-2
State 
0-1

As a very good hitter, Josh Kampsen drove in 15 runs last year. As a base runner, he
scored another 18 runs for the Lakers offense.

LAKE HENRY LAKERS

Matt Quades (left) hitting makes him a threat to score and his defense helps to hold
teams down.

TOM ELLIOT continued from page 2_______________


of the SCL, there were often Little League games on
Sunday night.
At Elrosa, which has
a lighted park, they dont
play games until 8:15 p.m.
Why so late? So the people
can milk the cows and still
get to the game. Thats the

story I like, he said.


Despite having covered a variety of players
and teams, Elliott finds he
still likes getting in a car
and driving to an amateur
game in central Minnesota. It seems he usually
finds something different

each time.
Im sure you are well
aware of what a hot bed
this area has been for amateur baseball, he said to
the gathering. Ive done
some research over the
years and seen a lot of
things that surprised me.

Lake Henry
ab r h bi 2b hr sb so ave ip so w l s era
Caleb Burris
18 1 3 1 1 0 1 4 .167 - - - - - Carter Wessel
0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Colin Riley
37 6 3 1 2 0 3
10 .081 - - - - - Collin Spooner 16 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 .188 - - - - - Jason Kampsen 70
10
16
14 4 0 1 6 .229 23.1
23 1 0 0
6.65
Jesse Lieser
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 - - - - - Joel Lieser
16 1 2 1 0 0 0 8 .125 - - - - - Jordan Lieser
16 2 1 0 0 0 0 3 .063 10.0 5 1 2 0
5.40
Josh Kampsen 59
18
28
15 6 4 7 4 .475 - - - - - Josh Roelike
42 2 5 4 0 1 1 7 .119 17.0 9 0 1 0
5.29
Matt Quade
72
15
26
10 3 1 5 8 .361 - - - - - Mike Ludwig
1 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 - - - - - Mitch Weidner 44 6 9 7 0 1 0 5 .205 17.2 8 0 2 1
6.62
Nick Reiman
15 3 2 0 0 0 1 4 .133 - - - - - Ryan Wuertz
54 6
15
17 3 2 0 5 .278 - - - - - Shane Kampsen 67
16
21
13 6 3 1 4 .313 3.1 1 1 0 0
8.10
Weston Brinkman 59 5 9 6 1 0 1 14 .153 66.2 51 5 3 0 3.38
Andy Bauer-d
- - - - - - - - - 8.1 6 0 1
1
9.35
Justin Schroeder-d - - - - - - - - - 4.0 2 0 0
0
0.00
Team
585 93
143 90 26 12 21 82 .244 150.2
103 8 10 2 4.96

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Page 6

May 4, 2016

A simple game with complex plays

by HERMAN LENSING Here are some situations


STAFF WRITER
that most fans rarely see,
and most officials never
want to see.
John Gerads of the
At first glance, baseball is pretty simple. Central Minnesota Umpires
Nine players on a team, Association provides the
three outs to a side, team explanations.
PROBLEM 1
with the most runs wins.
Step on Home Plate
It is so deceptively simWith one out R2 and R1,
ple that a great many fans
think they know more than B3 hits an over-the-fence
the players or officials. But home run. As B3 comes to
every once in a while (bet- the plate the runners turn to
ter yet every year), some congratulate B3 after they
situation or play crops up both advance to home plate.
that simply throws a mon- R2 touches home plate, R1
key wrench into the smooth misses it. Then, they both
understanding of the game. wait between home and

third to congratulate B3.


After B3 has crossed the
plate, the defensive team
legally and properly appeals that R1 is out for not
touching home. The umpire
agrees and calls R1 out. The
defensive team then appeals
again claiming that since B3
passed a live runner (B), B3
is also out. The questions
are:
QUESTIONS
Q: Should the umpire
have called the B3 out as
soon as he passed R1?
No. Not in this case.
The umpire does not grant
that appeal. The umpire is

correct in not granting this


appeal for two reasons.
1. Passing is not appealable. It is a live ball infraction.
2. A runner acquires
the title to a base when he
touches or passes it before
he is out, unless a preceding
runner is legally entitled to
it. He is then entitled to it
until he is put out, acquires
a preceding base or is forced
to vacate it by a following
runner legally being entitled
to that base.
Q: Had B3 been ruled
out for passing R1, could
R1 still have touched

home plate?
Yes, if R1 was actually
passed by B3...but in this
case, R1 was not passed by
B3. If a runner passes, but
misses a base, he is considered to have acquired the
base until properly appealed
by the defense.
Q: Should the umpire
have awarded a double
play as the defensive team
claimed?
No.
Passing: 5.09 (b) (9)
He passes a preceding runner before such runner is
out. Passing a preceding
runner is a live ball infrac-

tion. The ball remains alive


and in play. If other runners
advance or are put out following the call, those plays
stand. Passing does not apply to this play because the
runner acquired home plate,
even though he missed the
base. Passing can occur on
an out-of-the park homerun,
but in this scenario, its not
passing. Since this was an
out-of-the-park home run,
the defense would have to
do the appeal gymnastics
(step off process) to make
the ball live to execute the
A SIMPLE GAME
Continued on page 7

Grovers hoping to build


on last year
With a solid line-up of
hitters and above-average
speed, Meire Grove is a
threat to score runs in every
at bat.
That speed showed in
the team hitting; seven players had at least 10 hits, and
two players finished with
at least 10 runs. Andrew
Welle led the team with 20
hits, five of them doubles.
Also hitting above the .300
mark were Trevor Sawyer,
.333 with 16 hits, Colton
Meyer, .370 with 10 hits,
and Tanner Klaphake, .304
with 14 hits. Alex Welle and
A solid batter in the Grover line-up, catcher Brandon Sawyer has also proved his worth Brandon Sawyer led in runs
as a strong defensive player.
scored with 10 each.
Brandon Sawyer, be-

sides helping spark the offense with his 12 hits, also


emerged as one of the better catchers in the SCL. He
blocks the plate well, has
the arm to regularly throw
out base runners and has
earned the confidence of his
pitching staff.
The Grover pitching
staff can keep the team in
games. Led by Matt Imdiekes 1.29 ERA, the team
finished with 2.86 ERA. Jacob Imdieke, a hard thrower, can help in relief. The
pitching staff should improve with Ben Klaphake,
who played with the Freeport Black Sox of the Victory League last year, joining

MEIRE GROVE GROVERS

Meire Grove (formerly DBs)

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Meire Grove
ab r h bi
2b
hr sb ave ip
so w l s era
Jacob Imdieke 14 0 2 1 0 0 0 .143 32.1
22 3 1 0 3.62
Matt Imdieke
34 3 5 1 0 0 0 .147 63.0
38 3 4 0 1.29
Jaron Klaphake 56 4
11 5 1 0 2 .196 19.2 8 1 2 1 4.12
Jordan Klaphake
14 2
4
0
0 0
1 .286
- -
-
-
-
Ryan Klaphake 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 3.1 2 0 0 0 2.70
Tanner Klaphake
46 9 14
6
2 1
4 .304
- -
-
-
-
Tyler Leukam
8 1
1
3
0 0
1 .125
- -
-
-
-
Kurt Marthaler
43 2
9
8
3 0
0 .209
- -
-
-
-
Kyle Marthaler
33 7
7
3
0 0
0 .212
- -
-
-
-
Colton Meyer 27 2
10 3 2 0 1 .370 5.2 0 0 1 1 6.35
Brandon Sawyer
51 10 12
4
1 1
1 .235
- -
-
-
-
Trevor Sawyer
48 6 16
6
1 0
1 .333
- -
-
-
-
Alex Welle
49
10
13 9 1 1 1 .265 - - - - - Andrew Welle 52 9
20 6 5 0 2 .385 - - - - - Anthony Welle 16 2 3 1 1 0 0 .188 2.0 0 0 0 0 18.0
Team
492 68 127 56 17 3 14 .258 126.0 70 7 8 2 2.86

the team.
The pitching is only
one element of a solid defense that also includes
the strong throwing arm of
Trevor Sawyer in the outfield and Kyle Marthalers
play at first base.
The Grovers were a
young team yet last year,
but they showed a lot of potential. This year the offense
may include a bit more
power than the previous
years as the players have
played a few years against
SCL pitching.
The Grovers have had
talented teams in the past
few years, this year they
could have the staying power to seriously contend for
the SCL-crown.
2015 Records
Overall 
7-8
League 
7-6
Playoff 
0-2

75 Highway 4 North
Meire Grove
Melrose, MN 56352
320-987-3646

Handling a complete line


ne
of fire, wind and liability for
farms and homes.

Jaron Klaphake is one of


the many Grovers who can
get on base any number
of ways and is also a good
infielder with the club.

Follow this years


Boys of Summer
in the
Sauk Centre
Herald,
Melrose Beacon
and
The Enterprise!

May 4, 2016

Page 7

A SIMPLE GAME continued from page 6___________________________________________________________


appeal. R1 is out on appeal,
R2 and BR score.
PROBLEM TWO
Nine Men on the Field
Team A brings only
nine players to the game and
trails 6-3 after eight innings.
In the top of the ninth B1is
called out on strikes and argues with the umpire, and is
ejected from the game. The
team rallies scoring four
runs and leads 7-6 with two
out. That brings up the spot
held by B1 who has been
ejected. The umpire rules
the inning is over.
After the first pitch in
the bottom of the ninth in-

ning, the manager of Team


B comes to the umpire and
asked for a forfeit as Team
A has only eight players on
the field.
QUESTIONS
Q: Is the manager from Team B correct
saying the Team A has to
forfeit because it has only
eight players.
Q: If a team needs to
put nine players on the
field, should the umpire
have declared the game
forfeit when the Team A
finished its at bat?
A: The answer to both
is generally yes, but there

are a few details to consider.


Rule 7.03b specifically
states: A game shall be forfeited to the opposing team
when a team is unable or
refuses to place nine players
on the field.
The professional interpretations from the Wendelstedt Umpire School
do paint an interesting
scenario to this situation.
The home team is up to bat
winning 7-5 in the bottom
of the eighth inning. With
one out, Charles is due up,
however, he was injured on
the play in the top half of
the inning. He is not able to

come to bat and they have


no available substitutes to
take his place so they send
up the next player in the
lineup, Daniel, to hit. The
defense brings it up to the
plate umpire
(a) before Daniel completes his time at bat.
(b) after Daniel has
struck out, but before the
next pitch, play, or attempted play.
(c) after Daniel gets
a base hit, and a pitch is
thrown to Edward. Ruling:
In (a), If the home team
cannot produce Charles or
a substitute in the line up,

the game must be forfeited


to the visiting team. If the
game was forfeited, the visiting team will win 9 to 0.
In (b), Since Daniel
completed his time at bat,
Daniels out is nullified,
Charles is called out, and
the next proper batter is
Daniel.
In (c), since the defense
did not appeal before the
next pitch following Daniels at bat, his time at bat is
legal and Edward is the next
proper batter.
Play: The visiting team
scores one run in the top of
the 17th inning to takes the

lead 3 to 2. In the bottom of


the 17th inning, the visiting
manager exits the dugout
and tells the plate umpire
that his right fielder, injured
earlier in the inning, is unable to continue play. He
also claims that he has run
out of substitutes and has no
one to fill the right fielders
position. He tells the plate
umpire that he is willing to
play with only eight fielders.
Ruling: A team may not
play with less than 9 players.
A SIMPLE GAME
Continued on page 16

Balanced Silversteaks could win the SCL


Perhaps no team has as
good of a balance of veteran
and young talent as do the
New Munich Silverstreaks.
With a .418 average and
33 hits, Hunter Rademacher
was among the best young
hitters in the area. Ty Reller
had 30 hits, but veterans Jon
Gaebel, Joe Stangler and
Chad Funk all had over 20
hits. It never seemed to matter who the Silverstreaks
put to the plate. When a key
hit was needed, they found
someone who could deliver.
The team has speed
with Rademacher and Will
Funk, and uses it to get runners into scoring positions,
but they also had 38 extrabase hits last year.
Will Funks speed helped him with his hitting, fielding
On the mound is the
and base running. He led New Munich with 19 runs last same split of young talent Hunter Rademacher has the skill and speed needed to keep defenses alive with his
year.
in Reller and veteran expe- bunting.
rience in Jim Thull.
Thull threw 88 innings
and finished with a 1.84
New Munich
ab r h bi 2b hr
sb
ave
ip
w
l
s
era
ERA winning five games.
Brennan Hoppe 11 2 3 1 0 0 0 .273 1.0 0 1 0 27.00
Reller threw 82 innings with
Chad Funk
97 12 26 14 1 2
1 .268 -
- -
-
Cole VanBeck
10 1 3 1 0 0 0 .300 5.0 0 1 0 5.40
a 1.21 ERA and struck out
Craig Welle
39 3 6 0 0 0 0 .154
13.0 0 0 0 0.69
101 while winning seven
Grant Johnson 99
10
19 6 2 0 0 .192 - - - - games, showing promise of
535 Main St PO Box 119 New Munich, MN
Hunter Rademacher 79 13 33 11 4 0
2 .418 -
- -
-
better years to come.
Jacob Hinnenkamp 91 11 18 11 3 1
1 .198 -
- -
-
info@wormsreadymix.com
The Silverstreaks will
Jim Thull
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
88.2 5 4 2 1.84
www.wormsreadymix.com
again have a formidable
Joe Hoppe
10 3 1 0 0 0 0 .100 - - - - Joe Stangler
83 7 21 9 4 0 1 .253 - - - -
mix of experience and
Jon Gaebel
77 9
24
15 2 2 1 .312 - - - - youth, and should be solid
Logan Funk
15 1 2 1 0 0 0 .133 - - - - in pitching and hitting, and
Nick Stangler
64 4 13 5 4 0 0 .203
18.1 1 1 1 5.97
the SCL-North standings.
Paul Sand
5 0 1 1 0 0 0 .200 3.0 1 0 0 3.00
2015 Records
Ty Reller
89 5 30 6 4 0 0 .337
82.0 7 1 1 1.21
New Munich
Sauk Centre
Long Prairie
Overall 
12-9
Will Funk
81
19
20 7 6 3 2 .247 2.0 0 1 0 22.50
320-837-5288 320-352-2841
320-732-6452
Ethan Vogt-d
- - - - - - - -
5.0 1 0 0 9.00
Season 
8-5
320-256-4638
Jaron Klaphake-d - - - - - - - -
1.0 0 0 0 0.00
Playoffs 
1-1
Matt Imdieke-d - - - - - - - - - - - - Regions 
3-2
Team
851 100 220 88 30 8
8 .259 219.0
15
9
4 2.43
State 
0-1

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DJs Saturday Nights
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Kristie Giesler- Pharm D
Lexie Meyer - Pharm D

611 W Main St Melrose, MN

320-256-7292

MELROSE

PHARMACY
INCORPORATED

115 First Ave N


PO Box 352
Freeport, MN

320-836-2393
fspi2@albanytel.com
Cheryl Fuechtmann and
Kim Bauer, Owners

Page 8

May 4, 2016

Royals strong up the middle


Teams planning to defeat Richmond have to find
ways to shut down the middle of the lineup.
Scott Ruegemer, Dusty
Adams and Cole Schmitz
accounted for over 40 percent of the teams runs last
year. Stopping them is not
easy as all three can hit at
a .300 clip. Ruegemer hit.
.358 last year.
Complementing
that
trio are Brent Ruegemer,
Cory Niewind and Kyle
Budde, each of whom consistently got on base last
year.
The offense is one area
that Richmond would like to
improve on. They only gave
up 43 runs in the year, but
they also only scored 45.
Richmonds ability to shut
teams down comes from
pitching and defense.
The team is deep in
pitchers with Andy Bauer
Andy Bauer emerged as the ace of the Royals staff earning three wins during the year. leading a staff that is four
deep. The team ERA of 2.35
is a tribute to how effective
all four were. Adam Backes, Luke Jokela and Jordan Neu all threw well. So
well, in fact, that both Bauer
and Neu were drafted for
post-season competition.
Defensively the team
has played well behind whoever is on the mound. Catcher Cole Schmitz commands
a defense that includes
Adam Backes at short and

the sure-gloved Cory Niewind at first base and there are


very few teams that would
not consider adding Dusty
Adams to their outfield.
In addition, Richmond
will be able to count on the
talents of Tim Hanson for
the full season and should
benefit from Dan Hansen,
DJ Schleicher and Blaine
Athmann joining the team.
Richmond will again
need all that talent to gel.

Last season, the Stearns


County League as a whole,
and the SCL-South in particular, was very a competitive
circuit. There is no reason to
think it will not be this year.
There also is no reason to
think Richmond will not be
contending for the top spot
in the SCL-South.
2015 Records
Overall 
9-12
Season 
6-7
Playoffs 
0-1

Good Luck Royals!

STATE BANK
OF RICHMOND
22 Central Ave S
PO Box 519
Richmond, MN

Member FDIC

(320)

597-2145

www.statebankofrichmond.com

Have a Successful Season, Royals!


Were Rootin for You!

Scott Ruegemers consistent hitting keeps Richmond


in games.

RICHMOND ROYALS

Richmond
ab r h bi 2b sb so ave ip so w l era
Adam Backes
56 9 16 6 1 2 5 .286 14.2 8 2 0 2.45
Alec Anderson
5 0 1 0 1 0 0 .200 - - - - Alex Budde
15 1 6 1 0 0 1 .400 - - - - Andy Bauer
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 68.3 65 3 1 2.11
Brent Ruegemer 47 4 11 5 1 0 12 .234
- - - -
Cole Schmitz
51 4 15 7 1 1 8 .294
- - - -
Cory Niewind
52 1 13 6 2 0 8 .250
- - - -
Dusty Adams
51
12
17 4 1 2 6 .333 - - - - Dylan Adams
15 0 0 0 0 0 4 .000 - - - - Dylan Jude
8 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 - - - - Grant Thomes
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - Jake Guggenberger 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - Jordan Neu
46 4 6 0 0 0 4 .130 12.2 9 0 3 3.55
Jordan Torborg 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - Kirby Hemmesch 5 0 1 1 0 0 1 .200 - - - - Kyle Budde
53 4 10 1 1 0 8 .189
- - - -
Luke Jokela
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 30.7 34 1 4 2.35
Maison Grefe
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - Scott Ruegemer 53 5 19 8 3 0 7 .358
- - - -
Tim Hanson
7 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 - - - - Team
469 45 115 39 11 5 68 .245 126.1 116 6 8 2.35

CORKYS
320-597-2195 Richmond, MN

Meat Raffle

Saturday 1:30 pm

PLANTENBERGS
Food Pride

Groceries Fresh Meats


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Richmond, MN

Processing Plant 597-3620

Owners Tucker and Patti

Store 597-2385

Happy Hour

Monday-Friday
4:00-6:00 pm
Friday & Saturday
11 pm-1am

May 4, 2016

Page 9

Talented Roscoe
still a young team
Last year a lot of young
talent blended with established veterans, and Roscoe
emerged from the competitive SCL-South to reach regionals for the first time.
The team did get the
right plays at the right time.
As a team, they struggled to
hit at times, but when they
needed a big hit, they usually got one. Jordan Schleper had 12 hits and Trent
Gertken finished with three
home runs and nine RBI.
Team speed was also
evident. The team played
the small ball game finishing with 13 sacrifices. Nick
Dingman led the team with
four steals.
The offense didnt produce copious numbers of
runs, but defense helped
keep other teams in check.
Oufielders Leyendecker and
Brent Heinen have experiJordan Schleper has developed into a respected batter ence while Nathan Stang,
Brandon Schleper and
in the Rangers lineup.
Chuck Mackedanz have the
speed to patrol the outfield.
The Rangers young
infield features a number of
players who came from the
highly-successful Paynesville High School and Ros-

Dr. Charles C.
Reichert DDS
and Staff

Wishing the Royals


Good Luck!

597-2453
Good Luck Richmond Royals!

Brinkys Liquor

Hwy 23, Richmond 597-2323

coe Legion programs in


the last few years. Gertken
is solid at third and Jordan
Roos is a good shortstop.
First base had three solid
defenders in Jordan Schleper, Brandon Schleper and
Brady Klingfus. Dingman,
the catcher, is developing
well at that position.
The image of Roscoe
pitching changed last year.
For many years it was Brent
Heinen that did most of
the work, while last year,
Roos,Josh Mackedanz, Jordon Schleper and veteran
Brent Heinen all contributed to wins. Mackedanz, a
high school senior last year,
finished with a .62 ERA in
25 innings.
Last years finish by the
Rangers was unexpected.
This year they will surprise
no one, and many expect
them to do well.
2015 Records
Overall 
8-10
Regular Season 
6-7
Playoffs 
1-1
Regions 
1-2

ROSCOE RANGERS

Roscoe
ab r h bi 2b 3b hr sb ave ip so w l s era
Brady Klingfus
12 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 .083 4.2 3 0 0 0 0.00
Brandon Schleper 41 3 7 1 0 0 0 0 .171 - - - -
- Brent Heinen
37 4 9 1 2 0 0 0 .243 12.0 8 0 1 2 6.00
Chris Vanderbeek 25 4 5 1 1 0 0 0 .200 - - - -
- Chuck Mackedanz 19 2 3 3 1 0 0 0 .158 - - - -
- Clayton Mackedanz 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1.2 1 0 1 0
32.39
Cody Mackedanz 11 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .091 - - - -
- Cory Schmitt
2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - -
- Devon Savage 30 3 7 2 0 0 0 0 .233 - - - -
- Grant Thompson 33 5 7 3 2 0 0 2 .212 - - - -
- Jared Spanier
0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - -
- Jordan Roos
41 8 11 9 1 1 1 1 .000 51.0
25 3 4 1 3.71
Jordan Schleper 49 4 17 3 3 0 3 0 .347 17.2
13 0 1 0 5.09
Josh Leyendecker 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - -
- Josh Mackedanz 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .200 39.0
19 3 1 0 0.46
Nate Schultz
4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - -
- Nate Stang
25 2 3 0 0 0 0 1 .120 - - - -
- Nick Dingman
46 6 11 7 2 0 0 4 .239 - - - - - RJ Leyendecker 12 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 .167 - - - -
- Russ Leyendecker 43 3 6 3 0 0 1 0 .140 1.0 1 1 0 0 9.00
Tanner Harder
3 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .333 5.1 4 0 0 0 6.75
Trent Gertken
57 8 13 9 2 0 3 0 .228 - - - - - Jordan Neu-d
- - - - - - - - - 3.2
1 0 0
1
4.91
Team
497 58 105 47 14 1 8
8 .211 136.0 75 7 8 4 3.57

Nick Dingmans catching


abilities are as key to
Roscoes success as is his
hitting.

Liquors Wine Beer Bar & Party Supplies

ICE COLD BEER

Good luck to all area teams!


Step
Up to the
Mound

OFF SALE

KENS IRON
SALVAGE &
RECYCLING, INC.
320-352-6878
KEN PROELL

Buying All Types of Metal and Aluminum Cans

Recycling Plastics, Paper, Cardboard, Glass


11194 225th Ave. Sauk Centre, MN 56378

ATION ON
C
O
L
W
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N
R
U
O
T
A
S
U
E
E
S
GFORD!
MAINSTREET IN HOLDIN

Signs Screen Printing


Embroidery Promotional Items

320-746-0746

Advertise in our next


Amateur Baseball
Section.

Contact the Sauk Centre


Herald at 320-352-6577

Page 10

May 4, 2016

Schwagels
Store
Spring Hill, MN

Convenience
Store

Open 7 am - 9:30 pm

320-987-3221

PQuality
EPS PORK
Pork at a Competitive Price!
Jim and Helen Poepping

ing Hill
Spr rgers

Cha

29769 325th Ave Melrose

Experienced Chargers should


keep winning
The Spring Hill Chargers put themselves on the
amateur baseball map when
they upset defending champion Sobieski in the first
round of the Class C playoffs last year
The Chargers have
most of the team back who
won that game. The team
has a bevy of good hitters
and it is a rare inning when
the Chargers are retired in
order.
Eric Terres, who had
40 hits, converted those hits
into 24 runs. Jamie Terres
also scored 24 runs as
Shawn and Eric Schoenberg
came through with key hits
for the team.
The team has speed
- both Shawn and Eric
Schoenberg had 16 steals;
and power - seven players
had home runs.
The defense, anchored
by catcher Nathan Terres, is
solid in all areas. Eric and
Jamie Terres are solid middle infielders and the outfield has proven it can get
to balls.
Austin Schoenberg and
Jordan Welle emerged as
the teams pitchers, but they

can also count on the talents


of Brent Terres and Louie
Opatz.
The Chargers have the
talent and experience needed to have another good season and will be a factor in
the SCL-North race.
2015 Records
Overall 
15-10
SCL Season 
7-6
SCL Playoffs 
1-1
Region 15C 
3-2 Eric Terres is always a threat to reach base and start a
State 
1-1 rally for Spring Hill. A .400 hitter, he is also a top-flight
infielder.

Louie Opatz is one of


the pitchers that Spring
Hill can count on to keep
opponents in check.

320-987-3368

Good Luck Chargers!


General Auto Repairing
Tires
Batteries
Accessories
Fuel Injection
Computer Repair
Air Conditioning

SPRING HILL CHARGERS

Spring Hill
ab r h
bi
2b
sb
ave ip r er so w l era
Austin Schoenberg 95 11 23 3 3 8 .242 73.1 23 20 43 6 2 2.45
Brad Terres
16 2 3 0 0 0
.188 - - - - - - Brandon Welle
11 0 2 0
0 0
.182 2.0 0 0 3 0 0 0.00
Brent Terres
17 1 1 0
0 0
.059 29.1
18 15 16 2 1 4.60
Chris Spanier
49 5 8 1
1 0
.163 2.0 5 4 3 0 1
18.00
Corey Schoenberg 54 6 6 2
2 1
.111 14.0 3 3 7 1 0 1.93
Eric Schoenberg 91 13 29 8 7 0
.319 1.0 1 1 0 0 0 9.00
Eric Terres
100
24
40
4
4
16
.400 - - - - - - Grant Schoenberg 26 2 2 1 1 0
.077 - - - - - - Jamie Terres
101 24 33 7 6 3
.327 - - - - - - Jordan Welle
5 2 1 0
0 0
.200 56.2
34 27 20 4 3 4.29
Kyle Bertram
60 5 14 2 2 3
.233 - - - - - - Louie Opatz
73 7 23 4 5 0
.315 28.1 17 12 25 1 3 3.81
Nate Terres
96 11 22 3 2 2
.229 - - - - - - Shawn Schoenberg 98 22 35 11 11 16 .357 6.1 3 3 3 1 0 4.26
Tyler Revermann
8 0 1 0 0 0
.125 - - - - - - Zach Hemmesch
3 1 1 0 0 0
.333 - - - - - - Ben Schroeder-d
- - - - - - - 7.1 4 4 6 0 0 4.91
Brandon Worms-d - - - - - - - 3.0 3 1 1 0 0 3.00
JaColby Anderson-d - - - - - - - 1.1 0 0 1 0 0 0.00
Team
903 136 244 46 44 49 .270 224.2 111 90 128 15 10 3.61

!
s
r
e
g
r
a
h
C

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129 Lake Henry Ave S Spring Hill, MN


Jim Klassen, Owner

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Spring Hill Ballroom
987-3610

May 4, 2016

Page 11

St. Martin can play and win in SCL-South


The Martins, like other
SCL-South teams last year,
was better than their record.
The SCL-South was a
cut-throat division last year,
in which one game separated first and fifth place and
the regular season champ
was edged in the playoffs.
The Martins showed
that they are a team that has
the players who can perform
under pressure. They needed to win a one-game playin game to qualify for the
SCL-South playoffs, and
then played well enough to
reach Region 15C.
Kyle Lieser, 19 hits,
The Martins have learned they can depend on Jake and Bryan Schlangen, 23
Harrisons pitching during the year.

hits, jump-started the Martins offense that produced


130 hits during the season.
The Martins, however, did
not always cash in on those
opportunities. They did so
often enough though, to
reach the regional playoffs.
The team, even when
playing various players,
was again strong defensively. Scott, Matt and Mike
Schlangen have improved

the defense with their play,


as have Jordan Moscho,
Josh Olmscheid and Josh
Stangler. They were some
of the young players that the
Martins started a rebuilding
effort around. They are now
proving to be solid players.
On the mound, Ben
Schroeder made an immediate impact last year and
finished the year with 74
strikeouts in 75 innings and

had a 1.56 ERA. Jake Harrison adds another good arm


to the Martins team.
The Martins have all
the elements to be a winning
team in the SCL-South this
year and few will be surprised when they are.
2015 Records
Overall 
8-10
SCL Season
6-7
Playoffs 
2-1
Region 15C 
0-2

ST. MARTIN MARTINS

St. Martin
ab r h bi 2b 3b hr sb ave ip so w l s era
Austin Arceneau 26 3 5 5 1 0 0 6 .192 - - - - - Ben Schroeder 27 4 6 1 0 0 0 1 .222 75.0
74
6 3
0 1.56
Bryan Schlangen 59 13 23 12 4 0 1 9 .390 5.1 6 0 0 0 7.94
Cameron Schmitz 6 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 .167 - - - - - Chas Hennen
2 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 .500 - - - - - Jake Harrison
14 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 .286 28.0
12
1 2
0 3.54
Jake Thelen
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Jaylyn Arceneau 26 1 2 4 0 0 1 0 .077 6.2 8
0 1
0 6.75
Jordan Moscho 54 2 11 2 0 0 0 0 .204 - - - - - Josh Olmscheid 28 2 4 0 0 0 0 1 .143 2
0 1
0
18.00
Josh Stangler
52 1 10 7 2 0 0 0 .192 2.0 1 0 0 0 0.00
Kurt Schlangen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Kyle Lieser
52 13 19 8 5 0 1 11 .365 - - - - - Luke Rothstein
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Matt Schlangen 54 8 11 5 0 0 0 2 .204 - - - - - Mike Schlangen 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .125 - - - - - Mike Schlangen 55 10 14 2 0 0 0 7 .255 - - - - - Nate Schlangen 16 1 3 1 2 0 0 0 .188 - - - - - Scott Schlangen 54 5 15 7 1 0 0 4 .278 13.1 9 0 1 0 5.27
Brad Mergen-d - - - - - - - - - 6.0
12
1
0
0
3.00
Team
534 67 130 55 15 0 4 41 .243 138.0 124 8 8 0 3.00

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Page 12

May 4, 2016

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

Froncak has life-long association with Victory League


by HERMAN LENSING and then got on the team,
STAFF WRITER
Froncak said.

It was sort of fitting


that Paul Froncak found
out he was a 2015 Minnesota Baseball Hall of Fame
inductee while on a baseball trip.
It was a total shock,
he said. We were on a
baseball trip from Chicago to Pittsburg. We were
in the middle of Indiana
when I read about it online
in the St. Cloud Times.
Froncak has gone
through all stages of being
in amateur baseball. A native of Harding, he pretty
much figured hed be playing with that team, growing up in a baseball family.
My dad played baseball. In the summer we
played ball every day and
in the winter swapped
baseball cards, he said.
He grew up thinking
that baseball, and participating in it, was part of
life. He started playing after the heyday of amateur
baseball in Minnesota, but
it was and is clearly part of
the summer culture in his
life
In the small towns,
you go through the pecking order. At five years old
I was chasing foul balls.
Thats how it was. Then
you worked your way to
batboy and scorekeeper

He played five years


with Harding starting in
1966. The team did not
have a nickname. He finished active participation
managing the Lastrup
Lakers in 2010. In between he played and/or
coached with Harding,
Shady Brook Broncos,
Pierz Brewers and Barneys Bulldogs (now Pierz
Bulldogs). Barneys at that
time was located in Lastrup which had two teams
for a time. All of the teams
he was connected with
competed in the Victory
League.
What he recalls from
those days was the intensity of the rivalries.
Things are friendlier around the field now.
I remember rivals fans
screaming at each other and some arguing, he
said. It seems a lot quieter
and mellower now.
Part of that intensity
may have come from the
fact that the game was
more parochial. Until the
late 1960s most players
played with the team from
their hometown.
People move around
and want to play with buddies, but it is still good, he
said of player movements.
Even as he played and
managed Froncak earned a
reputation of being a pro-

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Long-time promoter of Victory League Baseball, Paul


Froncak was inducted into the Minnesota Baseball
Association Hall of Fame. He participated in the league
as a player, manager, coach, regional commissioner and
broadcaster.

moter of Victory League


teams. He has helped to
promote the Region 8C
(all Victory League teams)
tournament for a number
of years, and as Region
8C commissioner helped
develop the current format
of three weekends of play.
More than that, he also

became a voice associate


with the league through
broadcasts over KLTF radio station.
I started a little in
1979 and have been involved and on since then,
he said.
He doesnt really have
an outstanding memory of

2016 League Groupings


Resorters East
Alexandria
Carlos
Long Prairie
Sauk Centre
Swanville
Resorters West
Ashby,
Kensington
Millerville
Osakis
Urbank-Parkers Prairie

any one game he broadcasted, but he participated


in one that was broadcast
over KLTF and it was
memorable.
I was managing Lastrup in 2005 against Pierz.
It was the game to go to regionals, he recalled.
That game has become
part of Victory League,
and even central Minnesota baseball lore.
It went 28 innings,
said Froncak. I remember looking at all those
zeros on the score board at
one point wondering if it
was some kind of dream.
Twenty-eight innings, zero-to-zero and the winner
goes to regions.
Lastrup won the game
in the bottom of the 28th
inning. Reggie Litke, a solid player in his own right,
caught the first 24 innings,
then threw the last four to
earn the win.
The feeling of winning that game was a different one than Froncak
had ever had before.
Even as we shook
hands, it was sort of a
bittersweet win, he said.
We said we will never
forget this game.
In some areas, amateur baseball has struggled
to remain a viable part of
the area lifestyle. In central
Minnesota, however, it is
still a very visible part of
the culture. Froncaks view

is, it is because people are


willing to work for it.
We have dedication
from a lot of people to stay
active, he said. They
support the kids and family tradition. Also, nothing draws a crowd like a
crowd.
Another factor is how
baseball is supported in
certain regions or areas. He
pointed out that good amateur followings usually
have one or two good high
school programs within
their borders. In the case
of the Victory League, the
Pierz and Little Falls programs have been solid.
Over the years there
have been changes to the
state and regional formats
to encourage more participation and following. The
effects of those changes
are debated, but Froncak
sees some good in them.
They keep tweaking it, he said. People
still care enough to stay
involved. Thats a good
thing.
Froncak has stayed
involved on a number of
levels. His work is appreciated by fans, particularly
in the Victory League, and
last year was acknowledged on the state level.

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY SOLUTIONS

Victory League
- East
Buckman
Lastrup
Pierz Bulldogs
Pierz Brewers
Royalton

Victory League
- South
Avon
Freeport
Holdingford
St. Stephen
St. Wendel

Stearns County
League-North
Elrosa
Greenwald
Meire Grove
New Munich
Spring Hill

Victory League
- North
Aitkin
Cuyuna
Ft. Ripley
Nisswa
St. Mathias

Victory League
- West
Flensburg
Opole
Randall
Sobieski
Upsala

Stearns County
League-South
Farming
Lake Henry
Richmond
Roscoe
St. Martin

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May 4, 2016

Page 13

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

Speedy Lakers could run to VL-South crown


A lot of teams promise
to run.
The Avon Lakers do
it. The team stole a total of
104 bases last year and had
five of the areas top base
thieves.
Foremost among the
crew were Ricky Hendrickson, 26, and Caleb Curry, 21. Also taking bases
were Riley Voit, 13, Carter
Holthaus, 12 and Zach Tomsche, 11.
The ability to run paid
dividends as the Lakers hit
.245 as a team and an onbase percentage of .348.
Curry and Voit led all hitters
with an average of .309 and
.330. Avon was also patient
at the plate with a combined
116 base on balls.Reed Voit
and Holthaus each had 16
walks while Matt Meyer

contributed with 13. The pitching staff. Kyle Collins


team averaged almost six is a well-known pitcher in
runs a game.
the area. In 56.2 innings
When they have runs, he had a 2.86 ERA, struck
Avon can defend the lead. out 46 hitters and walked
With Curry at short and Ri- 15.Troy Wunderlich had a
ley Voit at second, Avon may 3-1 record across 36.2 inhave the best middle infield nings and Stich struck out
defense in the league. Vet- 23 and walked only 12 in
erans Matt Meyer and Reed 31 innings. Adam Harlander
Voit control corners.Avon has proven to be a solid closhas the speed to cover the er and Riley Voit is expected
outfield with Tomsche in to help on the mound.
left, Hendrickson in center
Those are among the
and Cody Stich in right. reasons for an optimistic
Carter Holthaus anchored outlook for Avon this year.
the plate and held runners in
check, throwing out 64 percent of those who attempted
a steal.
Even getting into position to steal can be tough for
Lakers opponents. The Lakers have a nice mix of youth
and experience on their

They should only benefit


with the addition of Will
Kleinschmidt to the team.
Just how the season ends
will be decided on the field,
but going into the season
Avon will not be a team that
can be overlooked and
they may well set the pace
in the VL-South.
2015 Records
Overall 
17-9
Regular Season 
11-2
Playoffs 
3-0
Regions 
1-2

The control and variety of Kyle Collins pitches give the


Lakers an edge as they compete in the VL-South.

Good Luck!

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Caleb Curry is always a threat to get on base, and once


he is able to get into scoring position. He is also a fine
shortstop for the Lakers.
A respected outfielder and
hitter, Rick Hendrickson
stole 26 bases last year.

Follow this
years
Boys of Summer
in the
Sauk Centre
Herald,
Melrose Beacon
and
The Enterprise!

from the

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Mon-Sat
7:00 am-2:00 pm
Sunday
8:00 am-1:00 pm

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Daily Lunch
Specials

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105 Avon Ave S Avon, MN

HAVE A GREAT SEASON!

AVON LAKERS

Avon Lakers
ab r h bi 2b 3b hr sb ave
ip so w l s era
Adam Harlander 54 3 15 13 3 0 0 1 .278 20.1 28 2 1 2 1.33
Caleb Curry
68 17 21 8 3 1 1 21 .309 8.0 7 0 1 1 1.13
Carter Holthaus 83 12 20 10 5 0 0 12 .241 1.1 2 0 1 0
20.30
Cody Stich
75 10 20 7 1 1 0 9 .267 31.0 23 1 0 0 3.19
Connor Huberty 25 2 6 3 0 0 0 1 .240 - - - - - Dave Kalthoff
7 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 .286 - - - - - Kenny Weber
23 4 3 1 0 0 0 5 .130 2.0 0 0 0 1 4.50
Kyle Collins
- - - - - - - -
- 56.2 46 4 3 0 2.70
Matt Meyer
78 13 19 10 3 0 0 4 .244 - - - - - Putter Harlander 23 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 .130 - - - - - Reed Voit
73 12 14 8 2 0 0 0 .192 - - - - - Rick Hendrickson 84 24 22 10 1 2 0 26 .262 - - - - - Riley Voit
103 23 34 16 5 0 1 13 .330 - - - - - Ryan Morse
22 3 4 3 0 0 0 0 .182 - - - - - Taylor Holthaus 17 2 5 4 0 0 2 0 .294 - - - - - Tony Harlander
6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .167 - - - - - Tony Schoenberg 27 6 5 0 0 0 0 1 .185 - - - - - Troy Wunderlich 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 - - - - - Zac Tomsche
54 12 7 4 0 0 0 11 .130 - - - - - Derek Thielen-draftee 6.1 5 0
1
0
-
9.95
Team
823 146 202 100 23 4 4 104 .245 217.2 169 17 9 4 3.27

Good Luck Lakers

AREA BASEBALL TEAMS

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104 Avon Avenue North | 320.356.7334 | avonstatebank.com

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Avon Lakers!

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107 Avon Ave. S., Suite #1,


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Sunday 8-6

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Page 14

May 4, 2016

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

Holdingford has potential for good


year

The Express turned a


corner of sorts last year.
Working in several new
players while getting some
continued good play from
veterans, the team posted
four wins and for the first
time since 2008, they qualified for the playoffs. With
some steadier play they may
well have won a few more
games.
The team has proven hitters. Derek Biniek,
Blaine Feia, Ian Hoffarth,
Derek Thielen and Jeremy
Springer have all shown
they can hit. Biniek and
Jake Klein can move around
the bases.
Defensively the team
Whether swinging away or putting down a bunt, Derek Biniek constantly finds ways settled into steady play
to reach base.
from Austin Gerads, Biniek,
Springer and Wade Barrett
in the field. The outfield has
the talents of Feia, Klein,
Holdingford
ab r h bi 2b sb ave ip so
w
l
s
era
Taylor
Milbrandt,
Jon
Austin Gerads 32 1 5 3 0 0
0.156 0.0 0 0 0 0 0.00
Springer and Brent Gerads.
Blaine Feia
35 3 10 6 0 0
0.286 - -
- - -
That defense, while talentBrandon Hellman 1 0 0 0 0 0
0.000 4.1 6 0 0 0 0.00
Brent Gerads
8 2 2 0 0 0
0.250 - - - - -
ed, did make mistakes. With
Derek Biniek
49
12
17 2 4 4
0.347 - - - - -
a year of playing togethDerek Thielen
48 9 16 6 6 0
0.333 59.0 75 3 4 1 2.90
er under their belts, they
Dylan Carlson
2 1 0 0 0 0
0.000 - - - - -
should play better this year.
Evan Milbrandt 1 0 1 0 0 0
1.000 - - - - -
Catcher, Travis ThielIan Hoffarth
38 4 13 4 0 0
0.342 4.0 2 0 0 0 11.25
en, has learned to play his
Isaiah Eichten-Folsom
7 1 3 0 0 1
0.429 - - - - -
Jake Klein
44 1 8 5 0 0
0.182 - - - - -
position. He is often calling
Jayden Prochaska 9 1 2 0 0 1
0.222 - - - - -
games for Derek Thielen, a
Jeremy Springer 54 6 12 4 0 1
0.222 3.0 1 0 0 0 0.00
workhorse pitcher who finJoel Klein
6 3 2 0 1 1
0.333 - - - - -
ished with a 2.90 ERA in 59
Jon Springer
21 4 2 0 1 0
0.095 17.1 7 0 3 0 8.84
innings. This year the ExJustin Szymanski 8 0 0 0 0 0
0.000 6.0 6 0 1 0 4.50
press are hoping that BranMike Stegura
4 1 0 0 0 0
0.000 - - - - -
Nate Brinker
49 7 9 5 1 3
0.184 5.0 5 0 0 0 3.60
don Hellman and Ryan SzyRyan Szymanski 16 2 1 0 0 0
0.063 31.2 7 1 3 0 4.27
manski, who had 31 innings
Taylor Milbrandt 28 3 2 0 0 1
0.071 - - - - -
last year, can do a bit more
Travis Thielen
42 1 3 3 0 0
0.071 - - - - -
pitching.
Wade Barrett
4 0 0 0 0 0
0.000 - - - - -
The Express can be
Team
506 62 108 38 13 12
0.213 130.2 109
4 11
1 4.35

optimistic about this year.


While young, some have
three or more years of facing
Victory League competition. Last year they showed
they could compete in the

VL-South. This year, they


may well win consistently.
2015 Record
Overall 
4-10
League 
4-9
Playoffs 
0-2

HOLDINGFORD EXPRESS

Follow this years Boys of Summer in the Sauk Centre Herald,


Melrose Beacon and The Enterprise!

Holdingford
Municipal Liquor
Stop in after the
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Enjoy the summer at


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746-2255

Gerads Oil
320-836-2517
320-746-2926
PO Box 104 Holdingford, MN

Rosanne & Mary 320-746-2962

Have a
great
season!

Good Luck to all teams!

Gary & Vicki Gerads

Main Street - Holdingford

Derek Thielen was not only among the better pitchers


in the VL-South, he also pitched over 50 innings for the
Express. He was drafted for post-season play by Avon.

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May 4, 2016

Page 15

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

Upsala Blue Jays hitters, defense can win


games
Led by a get-on-and-get
around offense, the Upsala
Blue Jays can score runs.
Ben and Brady Burggraff, Brandon Welinski, Brock Cichon, Justin
Lampert and others are
solid hitters. They are also
aggressive base runners and
are not afraid to take the extra base. The team averaged
almost seven runs a game
last year.
That offensive determination helped the Blue Jays
to an 11-6 overall record
and an 8-5 record in the VL-

West. Their season ended


in the league playoffs, but
teams have learned the Blue
Jays are not an easy team to
defeat.
The outfield has the
speed to cover a lot of
ground and they have the
arms to keep runners from
taking extra bases. The
catching staff has good rapport with its pitchers.
Matt Swanson and John
Fuchs are the best known
of the Blue Jays pitching
staff, but Cichon, Chris Ripplinger and Eric Lampert

also have provided quality


innings. Most throw strikes
and work fast making it
easy to play defense.
Something the team
hopes to improve on this
year is consistency. The
team has a group of players that is used to playing
together. Upsala had a taste
of state play a few years ago
and would like to return to
that level.
2015 Record
Overall 
11-6 Brock Cichons aggressive baser-unning is one reason the Blue Jays have learned to
League 
8-5 depend on him to score runs.
Playoffs 
0-2

UPSALA BLUE JAYS

Around the Horn

Upsala
ab r
h bi 2b hr sb
ave
ip
so
w l s era
Adam Gerads
57 6 14 7
5 1
0 .246
-
-
- - -
Ben Burggraff
44 6 7 7 2 0 0 .159
- - - - - Brady Burggraff 65
16 23 11 8 2 0 .354
- - - - - Brock Cichon
52 15 18 11 3 1 1 .346 20.2 20 2 0 0 2.18
BJ Lange
4 1 1 0 0 0 0 .250 2.0 1 0 0 0 4.50
Brandon Welinski 50 9 19 10 2 0 7 .380 3.0 4 0 0 0 3.00
Corey Johnson
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
- - - - - Chris Ripplinger 29 8 7 3 1 0 3 .241 20.0 10 2 0 1 2.25
Dustin Biniek
50
12 11 4 2 0 1 .220
- - - - - Eric Lampert
49 3 15 6 3 0 0 .306 11.2 8 1 0 1 5.40
Justin Cichon
36
14 9 2 1 0 1 .250
- - - - - John Fuchs
23 2 2 2 0 0 0 .087 44.2 33 4 1 1 2.42
Justin Lampert 49 5 19 9 3 1 0 .388
- - - - - Myron Ripplinger Jr 6 1
2 3
1 0
0 .333
-
-
- - -
Matt Swanson
61 8 17 17 3 0 0 .279 35.2 50 2 4 1 4.04
Tyler Evans
3 4 0 2 0 0 0 .000
- - - - - Team
579
111
164 94 34 5 13 .283 137.2 126 11 5 4 3.07

with the Victory League West


A team-by-team look...

Opole Bears look to battle in Victory League West


Opole Bears

New manager Scott


Biniek is coming into a rebuilding year for the Bears.
The team will be losing
the services of two key players as pitcher Max Posch
and slugger Keaton Gustin
have elected to play at St.
Wendel this year. Tim Huls,
a solid shortstop, will not be
available for all games, and
veteran Jim Muehlbauer has
opted to not play this year.
Finding replacements
for those players will have
to be done. Biniek, does
have good returning players
to help out. John Pilarski
had over 10 hits last year
and is a proven base runJake Nelson did most of the pitching for the Bears last ner. Dave Bialka is also a
consistent hitter. Sam Butyear logging 56.1 innings during the 2015 season.
ler also showed he can get

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around the bases.


They will also be a bit
deeper in pitching. Jake Eitchen, a long-time pitcher
with the Bears and a former
regional MVP is returning.
Jake Nelson, who led the
team in innings pitched,
is back as is veteran Zack
Bialka. The team recently
signed Brad Heitzman, who
should help the pitching
staff.
The team will have to
find the right combination
for defense, but they have
the talent to do so. They

Upsala, MN 56384

Mikel Nelson
Karin Nelson

Upsala
Chiropractic Centre
Dr. Steven O. Johnson

PO Box 157
106
10 Main Street S
Upsala, MN
Hours by Appointment

320-573-2071

Flensburg Falcons

With six players - A.J.


Jenks, Anthony Arnold,
Isaac Thoma, Josh Gen-

ske, Lucas Thoma and Paul


Krebs - getting ten or more
hits, the Falcons have the
batters to get players on and
around.
The team, however,
gave up a number of runs
and were often on the wrong
side of the win-loss column.
Lucas Thoma, Genske
and Krebs did the bulk of
the pitching for the team
last year.
With a year of expeVICTORY LEAGUE WEST
Continued on page 16

NELSON
Good Luck
INSURANCE Upsala Blue Jays!
AGENCY
Stearns
320-573-2151

Upsala 573-2100 800-924-2312

also have some promising


newcomers in Isaiah Folsom, Blake Patrick, Nolan Prokott, Austin Lange,
Jayden Prochaska, Matt
Caitlin, Andrew Hanson,
Cody Skwira and Peter
Schumer.
2015 Records
Overall 
4-11
League 
3-9
Playoffs 
1-2

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e
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P.O. Box 399, 140 5th Street | Albany, MN

320-845-4020 1-800-224-6671

Good Luck !
Opole Bears
Ross Voit,
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Page 16

May 4, 2016

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

VICTORY LEAGUE WEST continued from PAGE 15__________________________________________________


rience, the team should be
competitive.
2015 Records
League 2-10

Randall Cubs

The Randall Cubs


could not only be a stumbling block to any team
looking to win the VL-West,
but might hold the top spot.
Hitters Eddie Wenzel,
21 hits, and Dusty Parker,
20 hits, have both shown
they can get on base and
can drive people in. Those
two accounted for 35 of the
Cubs runs last year. Some
of those were with power
and the team finished with
seven home runs. Others
hitting well were Jeremy
Klein, Pete Herman and
Ricky Drew, who all had 17
hits last year.
Pitchers Kyle Boser
and Kyle Peterschick kept
opponents in check last year
and combined to strike out
over 70 batters.

Kyle Peterschick, of the Randall Cubs, is among the


most effective pitchers in the Victory League and can
keep most teams in check.

erage, a solid defense and a


corps of pitchers are all reasons the team will do well.
Offensively, the team
has a number of people that
hit well and can score runs.
The Skis have five batters
Sobieski Skis
The Skis will again be a with over 28 hits. Scott Liformidable team in the VL- tchy hit .426 last year and
Riley Hirsch had 35 hits,
West.
A .305 team batting av- Grubada followed with 27

hits and Collin Eckman had


25.
Those hits equated to
runs as John Czech and Litchy both had over 20 RBIs.
Those runs come because of
power as the team had 19
home runs, or creating runs
with 16 steals and 29 sacrifices.
Their pitchers keep

them in games. Cole Jendro


has a respectable 2.18 ERA
over 20 innings and Josh
Wenzel had a 1.80 ERA in
25 innings. Hirsch and Simon Waltman also threw
well.
Defensively the Skis
have rarely hurt themselves
and should not do so this
year. The team is also a nice
mix of young and veteran
players. Five are currently
in high school and four are
in college.
An accident-related injury to Tyler Jendro, among
the team leaders in hitting
and pitching last year, may
keep him from playing
much this year. Still the Skis
have depth to compete.
That mix of ages and
talent should help the Skis
to another successful year
as they face competition not
only from their league, but
also in various exhibitions,
games and tournaments.
2015 Records
Overall 
20-6
Season 
11-1
Playoffs 
3-0 Riley Hirsch (batting) and Scott Litchy (11) both had 35
Region 
3-2 hits for the Skis last year as they helped to produce runs
State 
0-1 for the team.

A SIMPLE GAME continued from page 7___________________________________________________________


If he is unable to produce 9
defensive position players,
the game will be forfeited to
the home team. If the Umpire must forfeit the game
to the home team, they will
win 9 to 0. According to
Wendelstedt, the game shall
be forfeited as soon as the
vacant position in the batting order is due up.
PROBLEM 3
Wrong Call Can Stand
Bottom of the ninth,
two out, the home team
trails by one run but has R3
and R2 on base. B5 grounds
a ball to the infield, but the
throw to first base is not
cleanly handled by the first
baseman. Because of the
position of the players, the
umpires view is blocked
and B5 is ruled out. The
defensive team thinks the
game is over and comes
off the field. The batter and
first base coach, also thinking the game is over, go to
their dugout. The third base

coach, however, saw the


misplay and has keeps waving the runners around and
both score.
Note the answers to the
questions are made on the
assumption that misplayed
ball was near the first baseman (within a step and a
reach), is not a wild throw.
Q: Did the home team
win because the runners
and batter crossed home
plate?
No. If this game was
umpired with one umpire,
his decision is final and
the game is over. This is a
judgment call that is also
non-protestable. The umpire
made the call based on the
information that he was able
to obtain on his own. Even
if the runners continued to
run, the call on the field was
that B5 was out for the third
out of the inning. The runners continuing to advance
is irrelevant in this scenario.
Q: Was the game over

when the umpire ruled the


batter out even though it
was the incorrect call and
it is obvious the defense
did not control the ball?
With one umpire, yes,
the game is over. His call is
final. It is not protestable because it is a judgment call,
not a misapplication of the
rules. Rule 8.02a states: Any
umpires decision which involves judgment such as
but not limited to whether
a batted ball is fair or foul;
whether a pitch is a strike or
a ball; or whether a runner
is safe or out is final. No
player, manager, coach or
substitute shall object to any
such judgment decisions.
Q: Did the missed
call create a weird situation because it led players
to believe the game was
over? Should play resume
with the B5 at first, the R2,
now R3, at third and a tied
game?
Possibly. With two or

more umpires working the


game, a competent crew
should fix this play with B5
at first, the R2, now R3, at
third and a tie game. An umpire is not obligated to ask
his partner(s) for help on
any type of judgment play.
With two or more umpires,
rule 8.02 b & c could have
an impact on this type of
play:
(b) If there is reasonable doubt that any umpires
decision may be in conflict
with the rules, the manager may appeal the decision
and ask that a correct ruling
be made. Such appeal shall
be made only to the umpire
who made the protested decision.
(c) If a decision is appealed, the umpire making
the decision may ask another umpire for information before making a final
decision. No umpire shall
criticize, seek to reverse or
interfere with another um-

pires decision unless asked


to do so by the umpire making it. If the umpires consult
after a play and change a call
that had been made, then
they have the authority to
take all steps that they may
deem necessary, in their
discretion, to eliminate the
results and consequences of
the earlier call that they are
reversing, including placing
runners where they think
those runners would have
been after the play, had the
ultimate call been made as
the initial call, disregarding
interference or obstruction
that may have occurred on
the play; failure of runners
to tag up based upon the
initial call on the field; runners passing other runners
or missing bases; etc., all
in the discretion of the umpires. No player, manager
or coach shall be permitted
to argue the exercise of the
umpires discretion in resolving the play and any

person so arguing shall be


subject to ejection.
Q: Would the inning
be ended with a tie score
because R3 scored, but
B5 walked into the dugout
during a live play?
If 8.02c is applied
properly (meaning another
umpire, on the field, working the game, other than
the original calling umpire,
when asked by the umpire
who made the call, gave the
umpire critical information
that could impact or alter
the calling umpires original
decision. In this situation,
B5 should not be ruled out
for abandonment and would
be placed at first base. R3s
run should count and the
game continues with R3, R1
and B6 batting. If the calling
umpire doesnt ask for help,
the game is over, even if the
call is obviously wrong.

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May 4, 2016

Page 17

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

Steves now ready to take VL-South

A few years ago the St.


Stephen Steves were a talented group of young players.
The talent remains and
is now experienced. The
team from the lead-off position to the number nine spot
has the players who can
deliver hits in situations.
Ten players had at a least
10 hits last year in the 18game season. Austin Guggenberger led the team with
22, Bo Schmitz had 19 and
manager Ben Omann had
18 hits.
Schmitz, a first-year
player with the Steves last
season, provided power and
Andy Stolt is another effective pitcher for the Steves who
can at times keep teams from getting hits and getting speed, driving in 11 runs
and recording seven steals.
on base.
Nick Krippner, known as a

ST. STEPHEN STEVES

St. Stephen
r
h bi 2b 3b
hr
sb
ip
so
w
l
s
Alex Omann
3 5 5 1 0 0 0
- - - - Alex Wolhart
1 1 1 0 0 0 0
- - - - Austin Guggenberger 13
22
12 2 0 0 0 19.2 22 2 2 0
Ben Omann
14
18
13 3 0 1 2 1.2 3 0 0 0
Blake Guggenberger 5 6 1 2 0 0 1 28.2 16 1 1 0
Brandon Waldvogel
8 14 7 0 0 1 0
- - - - Christopher Slivnik
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- - - - Cody Wolhart
8 13 4 0 0 0 1
- - - - Dylan Hollenkamp
9
12
10 1 1 0 1 - - - - Jason Slivnik
7 15 4 2 0 0 1
- - - - John Schumer
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- - - - Nick Krippner
6 10 2 1 0 0 0 55.0 47 1 4 1
Paul Schumer
0 2 1 1 0 0 0 8.0 4 0 1 0
Peter Schumer
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- - - - Sam Neeser
8 17 6 2 0 1 0
- - - - Travis Phelps
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- - - - Trent Phelps
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- - - - Troy Monson
3 4 1 1 0 0 0 2.0 0 0 1 0
Zach Omann
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- - - - TJ Bevens
1 1 2 0 0 0 0
- - - - Bo Schmitz
13
19
11 0 1 2 7 2.2 0 0 0 0
Charlie Slivnik
1 1 0 0 0 0 0
- - - - Andrew Stolt
- - - - - - - 37.2 15 2 2 1
Andy Kiel
- - - - - - - 5.2 4 1 0 0
Pogatchnik, John-d
- - - - - - - 1.0 1 0 0 0
Team
100 160 80 16 2 5 13 162.0 112 7 11 2

pitcher, made the most of


his opportunities at the plate
and put forth a solid season.
Austin Guggenberger and
Sam Neeser also had solid
seasons for the Steves.
Krippner has been the
staff ace for a few years
and has a knack for striking out batters, or having
them hit into inning-ending
outs at key times. Austin
Guggenberger contributed
with a number of quality
starts. Andy Stolt showed
that he too can keep batters
off base. This year the team
should only benefit from the
addition of Isaac Dammen
to the roster.
Playing behind that
pitching staff is a solid defense. Younger outfielders
such a Neeser and Dylan
Hollenkamp benefit from
the experience and leadership of centerfielder Cody
Wolhart. Austin and Blake
Guggenberger are an excellent pair for defending the

middle of the infield and


catcher Omann and Schmitz
have proven they can handle
that position.
While the team was
young and somewhat inexperienced last year, they
played well enough to reach
the Region 15C tournament.
If the team gets the quality
pitching they did last year

and make plays well defensively, they should have a


season equal to or surpassing last year.
2015 Records
Overall 
7-14
Season 
5-8
Playoffs 
2-4
Region 
0-2

Austin Guggenberger had 22 hits last year and with 13


runs, showed he can get around the base paths.

Saints will challenge in VL-South


Grant Pierskalla will
lead St. Wendel this season
as they look to improve on
their record from last year.
Led offensively by Lee
Maciej, John Pogatchnik
and Taylor Nitz, the Saints
are capable of putting runners on in every inning.
Those three led the team in
hits and scoring. The team
will benefit from the addition of former Opole Bear
Gustin Keaton.
The team defensively
can hold other teams down.
Pogatchnik is a quality
shortstop and Maciej can
play either third or short
effectively. Catcher Trevor
Van Heel oversees the defense and the pitching staff
has learned to count on his
calls in the game.
Ryan Blommer and

Pogatchnik give the Saints


two durable pitchers capable of going long into the
game. The addition of former Opole Bears Max Posch
will help their pitching staff.
St. Wendel has the offense and defense to back
up their pitching. When all
three came together, the
Saints can be tough to beat.
This year the team will be
looking to play with more
consistency, and to come up
with big plays in the clutch.
In a few of their losses last
year a big hit offensively
or a steadier defense might
have changed the outcome
of the game.
The Saints play in the
VL-South, one of the most
competitive divisions in the
area. The team has the elements to be a contending

team, and might well go further than it did last year.


2015 Records
Overall 
3-11
Regular Season 
3-10

Supporting

Lee Maciej has the glove


and arm to be considered
a top infielder.

ST. WENDEL SAINTS

St. Wendel
ab h
Beau Maciej
47 8
Brent Van Heel 45 9
Calvin Becker
12 1
Dillion Blommer 18
2
DJ Brown
19 5
Grant Pierskalla 19 2
Greg Pogatchnik 19 2
Hunter Blommer 36 10
Jake Beckius
22 4
John Pogatchnik 60 17
Kyle Jarnot
19 3
Lee Maciej
46 14
Nick Konz
7
0
Riley Van Heel
13 2
Ron Pogatchnik 4 0
Ryan Blommer
9 2
Taylor Nitz
38 11
Trevor Van Heel 47 9
Team
480 101

1b
7
7
1
2
5
2
2
7
3
14
1
10
0
2
0
2
10
9
75

2b hr r bi sb
1 0 5 2
1
1 1 2 7
1
0 0 2 0
0
0 0 1 1
0
0 0 5 3 0
0 0 1 0 0
0 0 2 9 0
2 1 6 7
3
1 0 2 1
0
3 0 10 3
4
2 0 4 0 0
2 2 7 13
1
0 0 0 0 0
0 0 2 0 0
0 0 9 9 0
0 0 0 1 0
1 0 3 5
1
0 0 2 2 1
13 4 63 63 12

ave ip so
.170
-
-
.200
-
-
.083 16.2
5
.111
-
-
.263
-
-
.105 5.2
1
.105
-
-
.278 1.1
0
.182 3.0
2
.283 28.1 14
.158 17.2
4
.304
-
-
.000 6.1
3
.154
-
-
.000
-
-
.222 39.0
8
.289
-
-
.191
-
-
.210 1
18.0 37

w
l
-
-
-
-
0 2
-
-
-
-
0 1
-
-
0 0
0 1
2 0
0 3
-
-
0 2
-
-
-
-
1 2
-
-
-
-
3 11

s
-
-
1
-
-
0
-
0
0
0
0
-
0
-
-
0
-
-
1

era
5.40
15.88
0 .00
9.00
2.22
7.64
17.06
6.46
6.48

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Page 18

May 4, 2016

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

Black Sox changing faces,


not success
The Freeport Black Sox
might have a few challenges
to meet this year, but as Rob
Mettenburg takes command
of the team they have the
elements to remain as a contender in the VL-South.
The biggest challenge
will be to find people to
help with pitching. Injuries
and resignation have bit
into the once-deep pitching staff, but there still are
talented arms. Mitch Reller
and Carter Sawyer did most
of the pitching last year and
collectively won four of the
teams 13 games.
The team has some potent bats in the lineup. Grant

Hess and Isaac Sawyer


provide power behind the
get-on-base abilities of Eric
Eveslage, Ryan Tschida and
Mike Frericks. Last year,
Mitch Waldvogel and Seth
Noll also created a number
of runs with their speed on
the bases. In addition, the
abilities of veterans such as
Troy Frieler and Chad Hess
cannot be overlooked.
Defensively, the team
remains strong up the middle. Eric Eveslage is a fine
shortstop and is the cornerstone around an infield that
includes Ike Sawyer and
Waldvogel. In the outfield
Grant Hess, Carter Saw-

yer and Seth Noll provide


incredible range and have
good arms.
The team went through
a bit of a transition last year
and hopes to build on the
talents of their young players and experience of their
veterans. It may not be an
easy year for the Black Sox
this season, but with the experience of their veterans,
and the athletic ability of
their youth, it should be an
exciting year.
2015 Records
Overall 
13-11
League 
8-5
Playoffs 
1-2

FREEPORT BLACK SOX

Freeport
r
h bi 2b hr sb ip so w l s
Ben Klaphake 1 1 1 0 0 0 2.0 0 1 0 0
Carter Sawyer 10 17 12 1 0 1 37.1 4 4 2 0
Chad Hess
5 8 2 0 0 0 - - - Craig Meyer
1 0 1 0 0 0 7.0 7 0 0 0
Eric Eveslage
9 12 2 0 0 1 - - - - Erik Freeman
0 0 0 0 0 0 - - - - Grant Hess
6 8 6 2 1 2 - - - - Isaac Sawyer
5 13 5 2 1 2 - - - - Jason Tschida
0 1 0 0 0 0 - - - - John Benson
2 3 0 1 0 0 - - - - Josh Vorpahl
0 0 0 0 0 0 - - - - Carter Klasen
0
0
0
0
0
0
-
-
-
-
Kyle Klasen
1 2 1 1 0 0 - - - - Lincoln Haugen 0 0 0 0 0 0 - - - - Mike Frericks 5 10 4 2 0 0 11.0 5 1 1 0
Mitch Reller
0 0 0 0 0 0 45.1 37 2 3 1
Mitch Waldvogel 4 1 1 0 0 0 - - - - Nate Klaphake 2 4 1 1 0 0 1.0 2 0 0 0
Nate Mettenburg 1 1 1 0 0 1 - - - - Nate Winter
0 0 0 0 0 0 13.2 10 1 1 1
Peter Burg
1 0 0 0 0 0 11.2 3 0 0 0
Rob Mettenburg 0 0 0 0 0 0 9.0 9 0 0 2
Ryan Tschida
8 19 13 2 0 0 - - - - Seth Noll
16 21 7 4 1 5 - - - - Troy Frieler
7 15 7 3 0 2 - - - - Team
84 136 64 19 3 14 138.0 87 9 7 4

ALL

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Offensively and defensively


Ike Sawyer (above) is
becoming a respected
player with the Black Sox.
Eric Eveslage (right) is
a key element of a solid
Black Sox defense and
respected across the league
for his play at shortstop.

Follow this years


Boys of Summer
in the
Sauk Centre Herald,
Melrose Beacon and
The Enterprise!

Around the Horn


with the Victory League East
A team-by-team look...

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Buckman Billygoats

Nobody competing in
the Victory League East
can afford to overlook the
Buckman Billygoats.
The team has talent
in all aspects of the game.
Offensively, they can hit the
offerings of most pitchers.
Defensively they have some
of the most exciting players
on the field and the team has
durable pitchers.
Ben Boser and Jeremy
Payne both hit over .400 on
a team that finished with
a .298 average. Jeremy
Monson pitched over 50
innings last year and Mark
Kahl and Corey Egan both
had over 30 innings as the
team went 11-6 before the
season ended.
The team will miss the
offense of Teddy Dehler, but
they have players and talent
to remain a contender in the
league.
2015 Records
Overall 11-6
Season 10-3
Playoffs1-2

Lastrup Lakers

Look for Lastrup to


again be among the Victory
League East leaders.
The team has the core
of a solid team starting with
their pitching. Chad Weiss
is not only durable (99
innings), but also effective.
He struck out 77 last year
and won 11 games. Brad
Meyer struck about a batter
an inning in 34.2 innings
and Scott Janson had 34
innings.
That pitching can keep
most teams in check, while
the offense puts runs across
the plate. Weiss drove in
24 runs with his 32 hits
and Paul Herman, Rick
Schlieman, Janson and
Reggie Litke all had over 20
hits and Brandon Lochner
had 19. Those hits equated
to runs and the runs equated
to wins. They should win
again this year.
2015 Records
Overall 18-5
League 11-2
Playoffs 3-0
Regional 3-2
State 1-1

Jeremy Monson is a proven durable pitcher for the


Billygoats who can help them stay in games.

durable pitcher. His ability


Pierz Brewers
A
tradition-loaded to change speeds keeps
team, the Brewers should batters off balance. His
never be counted out of a durability means he can go
game in the VL-East.
Mike Poser is a solid, VICTORY LEAGUE EAST
Continued on page 19

May 4, 2016

VICTORY LEAGUE EAST

Around the Horn

continued from page 18___________


deep into games. The team,
however, would like to have
a bit more depth in their
pitchers.
Backed up by a defense
that features Aaron Weber at
shortstop, the Brewers can
provide support for their
pitchers. As the defense and
pitchers keep opponents
in check, the offense has
the players needed to score
winning runs.
Dylan Kummet is adept
at reaching base while Eric
Boser, Chuck Boser and
Greg Pohlkamp all hit well
enough to drive in runs.
The Brewers were
at times inconsistent last
year and when forced to
play multiple games in
a weekend, their lack of
pitching depth showed.
Playing
with
more
consistency is something
the team can work on. As
they do so, they will be a
team to be considered in the
VL-East.
2015 Records
Overall 6-10
Regular Season
5-8
Playoffs 1-2

Pierz Bulldogs

The Bulldogs surprised


some by qualifying for the
Region 8C tournament last
year.
The
team
played
only one weekend at the
tournament, but in that
tournament and in the
season, showed they have
the players needed to
compete in the Victory
League-East. What was
impressive is that for much

Page 19

Amat eu r Bas eball - Vict ory Leagu e

of the team it was their first


time playing together.
Offensively,
Drew
Elness, Brandon Kiel, Brian
Kiel, Aaron Schultz, Craig
Luberts, Ryan Foreman and
Logan Meyer are respected
hitters. Defensively, Ryan
Foreman is a solid catcher
and Luberts is a gem.
Luberts plays any position
well.
The team has three
pitchers, Aaron Schultz,
Elness and Brandon Kiel.
The all pitched over 120
innings and struck out 90
batters between themselves.
This year, the entire
roster is expected to return
to the Bulldogs lineup. With
a year of playing together
under their belt, and some
additions to the team, the
Bulldogs should again be a
force in the VL-East.
2015 Record
Overall 8-10
Regular Season
6-7
Playoffs
2-1
Regions 0-2

Royalton Riverdogs

While the Riverdogs


struggled last year, they
showed
potential
for
building a good team.
Steve Hoff, Hunter
Young and Brady Moulzoff
all hit well and often against
Victory League pitching.
Pitcher Matt Gottwald
is among the more durable
pitchers in the area throwing
almost 60 innings.
2015 Record
Overall 
2-12
League 
2-11
Playoffs 
0-1

Matt Woitallas aggressive base running helped bring


runs to the Brewers offense.

with the Victory League North


A team-by-team look...

Aitkin has high hopes for newest VL team


Aitkin Steam

New to area baseball


this year is the Aitkin Steam.
They were accepted into
the Victory League North
division over the winter.
The team is hoping to build
a successful program with
some home-grown talent
which they have. The area
youth programs had over
80 participants and the high
school team competed in the
section finals the last two
years and qualified for state
last year.
Co-managers of the
team will be Austin Krohn
and Jeremy Janzen. Krohn,
who moved to Aitkin two
years ago to take a job as a
family medicine physician
for Riverwood Healthcare
Center, played high school
baseball in Pierz and played
four years at the University
of Minnesota-Morris. He
played amateur baseball
with the St. Paul Mudhens
and is currently on the
coaching staff at Aitkin.
We are hoping toadd
to the growing tradition of
baseball in our small town
which has been built from
the youth level up, he said.
The current roster is
composed of 12 former
high
school
players
with two having played
collegiately and two current
collegiate players (St. Cloud
State and University of
Northwestern). There are
nine current high school
kids all from the Aitkin
team that have been huge
contributors to the recent
section finals runs.
Our biggest challenge
is going to be bringing all
the different ages together to
become a cohesive team and
with a lot of younger talent
being able to hold our own
versus more experienced

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teams, noted Krohn.


The pitching staff is led
by current St. Cloud State
Huskie, Jake Lynn. Jeremy
Janzen, the co-manager and
aveteran lefty, was clocked
at 82 mph last summer and
has agood curveball
Offensively, the team
will have speed on the base
paths with some of the
younger athletes and a good
presence of veteran hitters
who can put together quality
at bats.
The team goal is to field
a team the community can
be proud of.
We have an older
population in Aitkin that
is very supportive of town
team baseball and we want
to put on a competitive
and professional show
each Sunday afternoon,
said Krohn. We are
placing a strong emphasis
on the character of our
team and will not tolerate
any
unprofessional
or
disrespectful behavior. We
are hopeful the Aitkin Steam
will be a strong presence in
the Victory League for years
to come.

fellow VL-North teams last


year, but can win in the
Victory League.
Lance Herbst and Luke
Zontelli led the team with
a .350 average last year. A
multi-dimensional
batter
who led the team in home
runs and steals last year,
Zontelli is also a consistent
batter and base stealer.
Herbst
also
gives
the Range Miners a solid
catcher and helps the
pitching staff. Jake Zontelli
showed real promise as a
pitcher finishing 3-1 with a
3.12 ERA. The loss was a
one-run nine-inning effort
against Sobieski. Dillon
Solid also provides some
good innings and finished
with a 2.45 ERA and 2-1
record. If they maintain that
level the Ranger Miners
should win a few more
games.
Playing defense behind
that pitching is Luke
Zontelli, a versatile allaround player. When Solid
is not pitching, he is playing
in center field and is good at
that position.
The Range Miners did
lose some players when
Cuyuna Range Miners the Aitkin Steam joined
The Range Miners the league, but still retain
struggled against their enough talent to win in the

Zach Heidmann is a batter


who has consistently come
through for the Devils.

Victory League. Returning


are Lance Herbst, Jake
Zontelli, Luke Zontelli, Tim
Chandler, Hunter Leslie,
Dillon Solid and Jamie
Stall. New players include
infielders Bryan Syrstad
and Bryan Sykora who will
also pitch. As those players
VICTORY LEAGUE NORTH
Continued on page 21

Supporting
All Area Teams
Dr. Jason Spychala
D.D.S., P.A. & Team

ATTORNEYS
J.J. Willenbring
(1918-2010)
Kirby Dahl
(1947-2012)
Paul Wocken
Daniel Zimmermann
Mark McKeon
John Neal
Kelly Warren
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Page 20

May 4, 2016

Amat eu r Bas eball - Resort ers Leagu e

Titans have elements for good season


Last year the Sauk Centre Titans became a team to
watch in the Resorters East.
This year they could
very well be the team to
catch. The team successfully
blended the talents of veterans and younger players
to compete in almost every
game. At every level-league,
playoffs and regionals - the
team never had a losing season.
Speed is a common element in all aspects of the Titans game. Defensively that

helps as Ben Bruggeman,


Andrew Rousslange and Bill
Friedrichs patrol the outfield.
All can cover ground, and
also have the experience to
play whatever is hit to them.
Up the middle, catcher
Adam Marthaler has developed into a smart catcher
who calls a good game and
is able to block the plate. In
the infield, shortstop Brian
Beuning and Dylan Haskamp
are as good as any shortstop/
second base combination.
In addition, Derek Holm

will return to the team and


should help the outfield. It
will help the team as Josh
Buschette, a pitcher and infielder, will be gone on military service
Speed is also part of the
teams offense. Rousslange,
Andrew Primus and Holm,
can get on base and get
around to score because of
veteran hitters such as Beuning, Friedericks, Bruggeman
and Marthaler.
On the mound, Beuning
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strikes.
The Titans have the
talent to have another long
season, but know they will
have to play well to earn it.
Alexandria and Long Prairie
are both in their division, and
they too know how to win.
Sauk Centre last year
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play. This year they very well
could put together a team
that will be just as good.
2015 Records
Overall 
13-13
Season 
8-5
Playoffs 
3-2 More than just a solid hitter, Ethan Meyer is also a
Regions2-2 dependable pitcher for the Titans.

SAUK CENTRE TITANS

Sauk Centre
ab r h 2b hr bi sb ave w l s ip so era
Adam Marthaler
57 13 18 3 0 9 5 .316 - - - - - Andrew Primus
63 11 14 3 0 8 5 .328 - - - - - Andrew Rousslange 96 15 29 4 2 16 4 .222 1 3 1 32.1 24 5.29
Ben Bruggeman
68 12 20 1 1 6 3 .071 2 4 0 44.2 38 3.63
Bill Friedrichs
67 18 22 4 2 10 1 .387 - - - - -
Blaine Olson
11 1 3 0 0 0 0 .222 - - - - - Brian Beuning
81 18 22 4 1 11 6 .302 3 0 2 33.2 47 2.41
Bryan Roelike
14 0 1 0 0 2 0 .133 0 0 0 7.2 6 5.87
Bryan Zollman
31 6 12 0 1 5 0 .350 - - - - - Dan Schmiesing
7 1 2 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 2.0 1 18.00
Dylan Haskamp
67 9 22 3 0 7 1 .273 0 0 0 1.0 1 36.00
Ethan Meyer
49 11 6 0 1 6 0 .328 2 4 0 31.0 40 6.39
Jake Haskamp
63 7 14 2 1 10 0 .294 - - - - - Jeremy Mellen
15 2 2 0 1 2 0 .122 - - - - - Jesse Flaten
13 1 0 0 0 1 0 .000 0 0 0 0.1 0 27.03
Josh Buschette
60 13 21 4 4 14 12 .286 5 2 0 53.1 41 4.05
Joe Schwinghamer 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Matt Searcy
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .295 - - - - - Nick Hinnenkamp 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 - - - - - Tanner Schmiesing 4 1 2 1 0 1 0 .500 - - - - - Ty Schwinghamer 61 6 18 1 0 8 1 .272 - - - - - Team
834 146 228 30 14 116 38 .273 13 13 3 206.0 198 4.63

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May 4, 2016

Page 21

Amat eu r Bas eball - Resort ers Leagu e

VICTORY LEAGUE NORTH

Around the Horn

continued from page 19___________

with the Resorters League EAST


A team-by-team look...

2015 Records
Overall6-9
The Alexandria Black Season5-7
Sox came within one Playoffs1-2
Long Prairie
game of reaching the state
tournament last year and
Predators
they may be better this year.
Well-balanced
from
With
hitters
such one to nine, the Long Prairie
as Parker Revering, Jeff Predators can compete with
Swendberg and Chris Curry most teams they face.
they can put men on base.
The team parlayed
Pitchers include Chris that balanced offense into
Curry, Eric Carlsen and an appearance at state last
Chris Beach.
year, and could do so again
2015 Records
this year. Mitchell Heid,
Overall10-10 Austin Kaiser, Duane Miller
Season6-6 and Cody Steward all hit
Playoffs1-2 at or above .400 and are
Regions3-2 among the best hitters in the
Resorters League. Mitchell
Carlos Cougars
The Cougars have a Heid missed a listing on the
tradition of rarely being out top batting average, but still
hit .450, with most of his
of any ball games.
They played even with hits going for extra bases.
Kaiser also supplies
most teams last year with
timely offense and some speed and had 15 steals
good defense. Few teams during the year. That same
have scored a lot of runs on speed is a reason some see
him as the best centerfielder
them.
The Cougars, however, in the Resorters League.
have not scored a lot of runs Logan Riedel and Miller are
on their opponents. That also solid defensive players.
The Predators have
led to some exciting games,
and they showed they can some of the deepest pitching
compete and win in those in the area. Riedel had 58
strikeouts in 47 innings and
games.

Alexandria
Black Sox

a respectable 2.11 ERA. Ted


Gray, who led the team with
55.2 innings and Taylor
Kaiser, 38.1 innings, are
also durable. In addition,
Tom Geisenhof and Steward
also pitch.
The team has set itself
a goal of reaching the state
tournament for the third
consecutive year. With the
talent they have, they could
very well do so.
2015 Records
Overall17-5
Season12-2
Playoffs3-9
Regions3-2
State0-1

Swanville Swans

The Swans have the


players and personnel to
do well in the Resorters
League.
This year they will
have a bit more experience
on their side as they seek
to move up in the league
standings.
Defensively, the team
has one the of the best, and
some say best, left fielder in
the league in Brent Barthel.
He is also a good hitter and
had the Swans lone home
run last year.

blend into a team, they will


be competitive.
2015 Records
Overall 6-11
League 3-8
Also playing in the Playoffs 1-2
outfield are Chris Baum and
Fort Ripley Rebels
Ben Jordan. In the infield
Impressive offensively
Kyle Sieben has shown he
(.297 ave.) and solid on the
is very good at third base.
mound (3.34 era) the Rebels
Beside Barthel, the
provide competition for any
Swans also have Zach
team they face.
Gutormson who led the
The offense is led
team with 12 hits in 15
by Logan Kalis, .388,
games. The bats of Ben
Brett Kramer, .364 and
Schultz and Austin Johnson
Brian Skulzacek, .375.
produced RBIs for the team.
Also making substantial
Swanville is a team
offensive
contributions
that likes to create runs with
are Nick Jelacie and Ray
steals. They had 18 last
Austin.
year, and in extra-base hits,
The team has a proven
they had 12 doubles.
core of pitchers. Ethan
On the mound, Ben
Branum (91 strikeouts)
Schultz proved he could
and Kalis both had over 60
keep most hitters under
innings, making it a tough
control and both Jim Pettit
team to score on and
and Gutormson did a lot of
keeping the Rebels in many
pitching.
games.
The Swans hope to
The VL-North is a
build on their strengths of
division known for scoring
speed - the return of Trent
runs. Ft. Ripley holds its
Loxterkamp should help
own in that division.
with that - and improve on
2015 Record
their pitching and defense
Overall 14-14
this year as they compete in
League 8-3
the league.
Playoffs 2-2
2015 Records
Regions 2-2
Overall 2-13
State 1-1
Season 2-12
Nisswa Lightning
Playoffs 0-1
Fans of power baseball
dont have to look much
farther than Nisswa to see
how effective a hard-hitting
team can be.
With
a
lineup
containing some of the most
powerful hitters in the area,
the Lightning had over 100
extra-base hits last year.
Jeremiah Piepkorn and
Tyler Witter both had 10

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home runs, Aaron Jenkins


added seven more and Jason
Roepke had six.
Mix that power with
ability to get on base
displayed by Brett Jenkins,
Chris Pederson and Drew
Boland, and you have a
team that can score. They
not only score often, but
as fits their name, they can
score quickly. Nisswa can
score plenty of runs and
it helped them reach the
state semi-finals before the
season ended.
The Lightning make
full use of their pitching
talents. Last year they had
four pitchers - Roepke,
Jenkins, Scott Sand and
Kyle Shaible - who all threw
over forty innings.
With a deep pitching
staff, and a team that can hit
everyone, the Lightning will
be in contention in every
game they play.
2015 Records
Overall 33-4
Season 10-1
Playoffs 4-1
Regionals 4-0
State 3-1

St. Mathias Devils

The Devils feature the


hitting of Zach Heidmann,
Benjamin Stall and Brandon
Owen.
Blake Thiesse, Jake
Francis
and
Matthew
Tautges have also shown
they have some power in
their hits.
On the mound, Jordon
Hunstad has proved to be an
effective pitcher.
That group has helped
the Devils as they compete
in the VL-North season.

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Page 22

May 4, 2016

Amat eu r Bas eball - Resort ers Leagu e

Around the Horn 2016 Boys of Summer Schedule


with the Resorters League West
A team-by-team look...

Ashby As

The Ashby As were


a .500 team last year and
should be better this year.
Offensively, the team is
held by Jordan Lillemon, a
consistent hitter. Defensively,
the team speed helps cut
down on extra bases, or just
takes hits away from batters.
The team does have a
deep pitching staff. Andrew
Risbrudt, Lillemon and
Chris Rylander all had good
outings last year. Newcomer
Derek Miller should also
help the pitching staff. Miller
played with the Alexandria
Senators a few years ago.
The team played well
at times last year, but they
also had shaky games. That
inconsistency hurt them at
the end of the year. The team
struggled to get runs across.
This year a goal of the team
is to manufacture a few more
runs.
One thing that will have
improved is the home field,
which made a number of
improvements and the team
looks forward to hosting
tournaments and playoffs.
2015 Records
Overall 7-8
League 7-6
Playoffs 0-2

they have picked up a few


more.
2015 Records
Overall
3-11
League 3-10
Playoffs 0-1

Osakis Hawks

The Osakis Hawks have


made a habit of winning by
creating runs.
Led by Ben Anderson,
the team has the quickness
to play the small ball game
and keep others from
scoring. The team is solid
at all nine positions and
Lane Berberich is among
the better defenders in the
Resorters League. That
defense fits in well with the
pitching of Derek Waldvogel
and Ky Zimmel.
The Hawks are a young
team; the average age is
about 20, but it would not do
to overlook them. Many of
their players played with the
2013 Minnesota State High
School League runner-up
team.
Osakis
won
the
Resorters West Crown and
competed in the Region 16C
tournament. With everyone
returning, and some newer
players coming in, the
Hawks could have another
good year.
2015 Records
Kensington
Overall 11-8
Norsemen
The pitching of Eric League 8-5
Elbe and Kevin Jenks can Playoffs 3-1
keep the Norsemen in most Region 0-2
Urbank-Parkers
games.
The team also has
Prairie Bombers
proven hitters in Tyler Kay,
Urbank-Parkers Prairie
Alan Strom, Kevin Jenks was the dominant team in the
Aaron Geise and Mike Resorters League and will
Anderson.
be among the front runners
2015 Records
again this year.
Overall 4-13
The Bombers jumped to
Season 2-11 a quick lead in the ResortersPlayoffs 2-2 West last season and have
pretty much stayed there.
Millerville Millers
The Millerville Millers With hitters such as Trey
played to a 3-10 regular Thompson and Conner Kerr,
season last year. With a the team can score runs.
The team is capable of
break or two, they might
scoring runs a lot of runs.
have won a few more.
The team knows it They also hold opponents
is better than their record in check, and are capable
shows. They lost three of shutting out most teams.
games during the regular They may do that a few
season by one run. They times as the year unfolds.
2015 Records
also were eliminated from
15-5
playoff contention by one Overall 
League 
11-2
run.
2-1
The team should do Playoffs 
1-2
better this year as most of Regional 
the players are returning and

STEARNS COUNTY LEAGUE

April 24
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
May 1
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
May 5
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
May 13
8:00 pm
May 15
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
May 22
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
May 27
7:30 pm
8:15 pm
May 28
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
May 29
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
June 5
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
June 11
11 am

St. Martin @ Richmond


Farming @ Lake Henry
Meire Grove @ Roscoe
Spring Hill @ New Munich
Elrosa @ Greenwald
Richmond @ Farming
Roscoe @ St. Martin
Lake Henry @ Greenwald
New Munich @ Meire Grove
Elrosa @ Spring Hill
Farming @ Roscoe
Lake Henry @ Richmond
St. Martin @ Elrosa
New Munich @ Greenwald
Meire Grove @ Spring Hill
Roscoe @ Elrosa
Roscoe @ LakeHenry
St. Martin @ Farming
Spring Hill @ Richmond
Greenwald @ Meire Grove
Elrosa @ New Munich
St. Martin @ Lake Henry
Richmond @ Roscoe
New Munich @ Farming
Meire Grove @ Elrosa
Spring Hill @ Greenwald
Farming @ Elrosa
Meire Grove @ St. Martin
Richmond @ Meire Grove
Lake Henry @ Spring Hill
St. Martin @ New Munich
Roscoe @ Greenwald
Greenwald @ Farming
Spring Hill @ Roscoe
New Munich @ Lake Henry
Elrosa @ Richmond
Farming @ Meire Grove
Roscoe @ New Munich

June 12
1:30 pm
June 17
8:15 pm
June 18
3:00 pm
June 19
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
June 24
8:15 pm

June 26
1:30 pm
July 1
7:30 pm
July 2
1:30 pm
July 3
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
July 8
7:30 pm
July 9
8:30 pm
July 10
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
July 15
8:30 pm
July 17
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
July 22
8:15 pm
July 23
1:30 pm
July 24
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm
1:30 pm

Richmond @ Greenwald
Richmond @ St. Martin
Greenwald @ New Munich
Lake Henry @ Farming
Spring Hill @ Meire Grove
SCL-CLL All-Star Game
@ Elrosa
Elrosa @ Lake Henry
Greenwald @ Elrosa
St. Martin @ Roscoe
Farming @ Richmond
Meire Grove @ Lake Henry
New Munich @ Spring Hill
Spring Hill @ Elrosa
Greenwald @ St. Martin
Roscoe @ Farming
Richmond @ Lake Henry
Meire Grove @ New Munich
Farming @ St. Martin
Lake Henry @ Roscoe
New Munich @ Richmond
Elrosa @ Meire Grove
Greenwald @ Spring Hill
Lake Henry @ St. Martin
St. Martin @ Spring Hill
Roscoe @ Richmond
Spring Hill @ Farming
Meire Grove @ Greenwald
New Munich @ Elrosa

Central V.L. vs Stearns C.L. Challenge


@ Kimball and Watkins.

RESORTERS LEAGUE
Apr 30
June 05
2:00pm Ashby @ Alexandria
1:00pm Sauk Centre @ Swanville
3:00pm Swanville @ Kensington
2:00pm Kensington @ Osakis
May 1
2:00pm Urbank-PP @ Millerville
2:00pm Sauk Centre @ Osakis
2:00pm Long Prairie @ Carlos
2:00pm Swanville @ Long Prairie
June 10
2:00pm Carlos @ Millerville
8:00pm Osakis @Ashby
May 6
8:00pm Kensington @ Urbank-PP
8:00pm Osakis @ Carlos
June 12
May 8
1:00pm Carlos @ Sauk Centre
1:00pm Sauk Centre @ Kensington
2:00pm Millerville @ Osakis
2:00pm Ashby @ Swanville
2:00pm Kensington @Ashby
2:00pm Millerville @ Long Prairie
June 17
May 13
7:30pm Sauk Centre @ Long Prairie
8:00pm Carlos @ Ashby
8:00pm Urbank-PP @Ashby
May 14
June 18
1:00pm Urbank-PP @ Sauk Centre
7:30pm Osakis @ Urbank-PP
2:00pm Long Prairie @ Kensington
7:30pm Alexandria @ Carlos
7:00pm Osakis @ Alexandria
June 19
May 15
1:00pm Swanville @ Carlos
1:00pm Swanville @ Sauk Centre
4:00pm Millerville @ Kensington
May 21
7:30pm Alexandria @ Long Prairie
1:00pm Osakis @ Swanville
June 25
2:00pm Alexandria @ Kensington
7:30pm Millerville @Urbank-PP
7:30pm Urbank-PP @ Carlos
June 26
May 22
2:00pm Millerville @ Swanville
2:00pm Ashby @ Osakis
July 01
2:00pm Sauk Centre @ Millerville
8:00pm Kensington @Ashby
2:00pm Urbank-PP @ Kensington
8:00pm Sauk Centre @ Carlos
May 27
July 02
7:00pm Millerville @ Ashby
1:00pm Swanville @ Alexandria
May 27
4:00pm Osakis @ Millerville
8:00pm Swanville @ Urbank-PP
July 02
May 28
7:30pm Long Prairie @ Urbank-PP
1:00pm Regal Eagles @ Sauk Centre
July 03
7:30pm Osakis @ Long Prairie
2:00pm Osakis @ Kensington
May 29
7:00pm Ashby @ Millerville
1:00pm Long Prairie @ Sauk Centre
7:30pm Carlos @ Long Prairie
2:00pm Urbank-PP @ Osakis
July 10
May 30
1:00pm Ashby @Sauk Centre
2:00pm Kensington @ Carlos
1:00pm Long Prairie @ Swanville
June 03
5:00pm Ashby @ Long Prairie
8:00pm Ashby @ Urbank-PP
July 17
June 04
1:00pm Sauk Centre @ Alexandria
1:00pm Carlos @ Swanville
4:00pm Kensington @ Millerville
8:00pm Long Prairie @ Alexandria

VICTORY LEAGUE

April 23
8:00 pm St. Stephen @ Freeport
April 24
1:30pm Nisswa @ Aitkin
1:30pm Ft. Ripley @ Avon
1:30pm Pierz Brewers @ Buckman
1:30pm Pierz Bulldogs @ Lastrup

@ Pierz Legion Park
1:30pm Flensburg @ Opole
1:30pm Sobieski @ Randall
1:30pm Upsala @ Royalton
1:30pm Cuyuna @ St. Mathias
1:30pm Holdingford @ St. Wendel
May 1
1:30pm St. Wendel @ Aitkin
1:30pm St. Stephen @ Avon
1:30pm Royalton @ Buckman
1:30pm Lastrup @ Flensburg
1:30pm Cuyuna @ Ft. Ripley
1:30pm Freeport @ Holdingford
1:30pm Randall @ Opole
1:30pm Pierz Brewers @ Pierz Bulldogs
1:30pm Nisswa @ St. Mathias
1:30pm Sobieski @ Upsala
May 7
8:00pm St. Wendel @ Freeport
May 8
1:30pm Aitkin @ Cuyuna
1:30pm Royalton @ Flensburg
1:30pm Nisswa @ Ft. Ripley
1:30pm Opole @ Pierz Brewers
1:30pm Buckman @ Randall
1:30pm Pierz Bulldogs @ Sobieski
1:30pm Avon @ St. Mathias
1:30pm Holdingford @ St. Stephen
1:30pm Lastrup @ Upsala
May 15
1:30pm Freeport @ Cuyuna
1:30pm St. Stephen @ Ft. Ripley
1:30pm Aitkin @ Holdingford
1:30pm Avon @ Nisswa
1:30pm Buckman @ Opole
1:30pm Royalton @ Pierz Bulldogs
1:30pm Flensburg @ Randall
1:30pm Upsala @ Sobieski
1:30pm St. Wendel @ St. Mathias
4:00pm Pierz Brewers @ Lastrup

@ Pierz Legion Park
May 21
8:00pm St. Mathias @ Freeport
May 22
1:00 pm Lastrup @ Royalton
1:30pm Avon @ Aitkin
1:30pm Randall @ Flensburg
1:30pm Cuyuna @ Holdingford
1:30pm Buckman @ Pierz Bulldogs
1:30pm Pierz Brewers @ Sobieski
1:30pm Nisswa @ St. Stephen
1:30pm Ft. Ripley @ St. Wendel
1:30pm Opole @ Upsala
3:30pm Royalton @ Lastrup

@ Royalton
May 28
8:00 pm Holdingford @ Freeport
May 29
1:30pm Nisswa @ Cuyuna
1:30pm St. Mathias @ Ft. Ripley
1:30pm Sobieski @ Opole
1:30pm Royalton @ Pierz Brewers
1:30pm Flensburg @ Pierz Bulldogs
1:30pm Upsala @ Randall
1:30pm Aitkin @ St. Stephen
1:30pm Avon @ St. Wendel
7:00pm Buckman @ Lastrup

@ Pierz Legion Park
Monday, May 30
1:30pm Cuyuna @ Avon
1:30pm Pierz Brewers @ Flensburg
1:30pm Freeport @ Ft. Ripley
1:30pm St. Stephen @ Holdingford
1:30pm Lastrup @ Opole
1:30pm Randall @ Pierz Bulldogs
1:30pm Royalton @ Sobieski
1:30pm Aitkin @ St. Mathias
1:30pm Nisswa @ St. Wendel
1:30pm Buckman @ Upsala

June 4
1:30pm Ft. Ripley @ Cuyuna
1:30pm Freeport @ St. Wendel
4:00pm Randall @ Pierz Brewers
7:30pm Upsala @ Pierz Brewers
June 5
1:30pm Ft. Ripley @ Aitkin
1:30pm Pierz Bulldogs @ Buckman
1:30pm St. Mathias @ Cuyuna
1:30pm Avon @ Holdingford
1:30pm Freeport @ Nisswa
1:30pm Opole @ Randall
June 11
1:30pm Sobieski @ Flensburg
1:30pm St. Wendel @ St. Stephen
June 12
1:30pm Lastrup @ Buckman
1:30pm Holdingford @ Ft. Ripley
1:30pm Aitkin @ Nisswa
1:30pm Pierz Bulldogs @ Opole
1:30pm Pierz Brewers @ Royalton
1:30pm St. Mathias @ St. Stephen
1:30pm Cuyuna @ St. Wendel
1:30pm Flensburg @ Upsala
June 18
1:30pm St. Mathias @ Aitkin
1:30pm St. Wendel @ Avon
1:30pm Upsala @ Flensburg
1:30pm Holdingford @ Nisswa
1:30pm Opole @ Royalton
1:30pm Freeport @ St. Stephen
June 19
1:30pm Cuyuna @ Aitkin
1:30pm Freeport @ Avon
1:30pm Flensburg @ Buckman
1:30pm St. Mathias @ Holdingford
1:30pm Upsala @ Pierz Bulldogs
1:30pm Royalton @ Randall
1:30pm Opole @ Sobieski
1:30pm St. Stephen @ St. Wendel
4:00PM Lastrup @ Pierz Brewers
June 25
1:30pm Randall @ Sobieski
8:00 pm Aitkin @ Freeport
June 26
1:30pm Sobieski @ Buckman
1:30pm St. Wendel @ Holdingford
1:30pm Cuyuna @ Nisswa
1:30pm Pierz Bulldogs @ Pierz Brewers
1:30pm Ft. Ripley @ St. Mathias
1:30pm Avon @ St. Stephen
4:00pm Randall @ Lastrup

@ Pierz Legion Park
Friday, July 1
8:00pm Ft. Ripley @ Nisswa
8:00pm Lastrup @ Pierz Bulldogs
July 2
1:30pm St. Mathias @ Nisswa
1:30pm Upsala @ Opole
July 3
1:30pm Holdingford @ Avon
1:30pm St. Stephen @ Cuyuna
1:30pm Aitkin @ Ft. Ripley
1:30pm Buckman @ Royalton
1:30pm Flensburg @ Sobieski
July 9
1:30pm Opole @ Flensburg
1:30pm Buckman @ Pierz Brewers
1:30pm Pierz Bulldogs @ Royalton
1:30pm Randall @ Upsala
4:00pm Sobieski @ Lastrup

@ Pierz Legion Park
8:00 pm Avon @ Freeport

2016 League
Groupings
on page 12
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May 4, 2016

Page 23

2015 statistical leaders


TOP BATTING AVERAGE
37 Appearances Needed
.427 Austin Kaiser-Long Prairie
.427 Scott Litchy-Sobieski
.426 Ben Boser-Buckman
.426 Jon Czech-Sobieski
.425 Cody Steward-Long Prairie
.422 Bryan Schlangen-St. Martin
.418 Hunter Rademacher-New Munich
.407 Jeremy Payne-Buckman
.403 Dylan Kummet-Pierz Brewers
.402 Jason Roepke-Nisswa
TOP SLUGGING PERCENTAGE
37 Appearances Needed
.944 Jon Czech-Sobieski
.725 Jeremiah Piepkorn-Nisswa
.696 Tyler Wittwer-Nisswa
.655 Jason Roepke-Nisswa
.687 Duane Miller-Long Prairie
.617 Josh Buschette-Sauk Centre
.622 Scott Litchy-Sobieski
.607 Eric Boser-Pierz Brewers
.600 Brady Burggraff-Upsala
.595 Jeremy Monson-Buckman
TOP ON BASE PERCENTAGE
37 Appearances Needed
.614 Jeremy Payne-Buckman
.544 Jon Czech-Sobieski
.541 Adam Marthaler-Sauk Centre
.532 Travis Kahl-Buckman
.526 Ben Boser-Buckman
.526 Bryan Schlangen-St. Martin
.515 Scott Litchy-Sobieski
.513 Dylan Kummet-Pierz Brewers
.512 Nate Neeser-Buckman
.508 Dusty Adams-Richmond
MOST HITS
54 Jeremiah Piepkorn-Nisswa
49 Drew Boland-Nisswa
44 Aaron Jenkins-Nisswa
40 Eric Terres Spring Hill
39 Brent Kramer-Ft. Ripley
39 Brett Jenkins-Nisswa
39 Duane Miller-Long Prairie
38 Kevin Kuefler-Elrosa
38 Logan Kalis-Ft. Ripley
38 Tyler Wittwer-Nisswa

MOST DOUBLES
12 Cody Eichers-Elrosa
11 Jeremiah Piepkorn-Nisswa
11 Shawn Schoenberg-Spring Hill
10 Chad Weiss-Lastrup
10 Rhett Williamson-Ft. Ripley
9 Austin Kaiser-Long Prairie
9 Drew Boland-Nisswa
9 Logan Kalis-Ft. Ripley
8 Brady Burggraff-Upsala
7 Four Players
MOST TRIPLES
3 Brett Kramer-Ft. Ripley
2 Brandon Kiel-Pierz Bulldogs
3 Duane Miller-Long Prairie
2 Austin Host-Long Prairie
2 Hunter Rademacher-New Munich
2 Logan Riedel-Long Prairie
2 Rick Hendrickson-Avon
1 Several Players
MOST HOME RUNS
10 Jeremiah Piepkorn-Nisswa
10 Tyler Wittwer-Nisswa
9 Jon Czech-Sobieski
7 Aaron Jenkins-Nisswa
6 Jason Roepke-Nisswa
5 Duane Miller-Long Prairie
5 Ethan Vogt-Elrosa
5 Isaac Thoma-Flensburg
4 Brett Kraemer-Ft. Ripley
4 Josh Buschette-Sauk Centre
MOST RUNS
44 Drew Boland-Nisswa
39 Jeremiah Piepkorn-Nisswa
33 Duane Miller-Long Prairie
32 Brett Kramer-Ft. Ripley
31 Tyler Wittwer-Nisswa
28 Aaron Jenkins-Nisswa
28 Riley Hirsch-Sobieski
28 Rhett Williamson-Ft. Ripley
27 Luke Schumer-Nisswa
25 Three Players

MOST RBI
44 Jeremiah Piepkorn-Nisswa
33 Aaron Jenkins-Nisswa
33 Ray Austin-Ft. Ripley
29 Scott Litchy-Sobieski
29 Tyler Wittwer-Nisswa
28 Brett Kramer-Ft. Ripley
25 Chad Weiss-Lastrup
24 Eric Terres-Spring Hill
24 Jamie Terres-Spring Hill
23 Drew Boland-Nisswa
23 Ethan Vogt-Elrosa
MOST STEALS
26 Rick Hendrickson-Avon
21 Caleb Curry-Avon
16 Eric Terres-Spring Hill
16 Shawn Schoenberg-Spring Hill
15 Austin Kaiser-Long Prairie
13 Riley Voit-Avon
12 Carter Holthaus-Avon
12 Josh Buschette-Sauk Centre
12 Kyle Lieser-St. Martin
11 Craig Luberts-Pierz Bulldogs
11 Zac Tomsche-Avon
MOST WALKS
27 Aaron Jenkins-Nisswa
24 Adam Marthaler-Sauk Centre
23 Drew Boland-Nisswa
20 Tim Zastrow-Long Prairie
19 Brett Kramer-Ft. Ripley
19 Chad Funk-New Munich
19 Jon Gaebel-New Munich
18 Jason Sadlovsky-Lastrup
18 Joey Gaida-Long Prairie
17 Brett Jenkins-Nisswa
MOST HIT BY PITCH
11 Dustin Biniek-Upsala
10 Matt Middendorf-Elrosa
8 Derek Thielen-Holdingford
8 Tyler Wittwer-Nisswa
7 Cody Steward-Long Prairie
7 Ethan Vogt-Elrosa
7 Joe Stangler-New Munich
7 Jon Olmscheid-Elrosa
7 Logan Kalis-Ft. Ripley
6 Three Players
MOST SACRIFICES
8 Austin Schoenberg-Spring Hill
8 Joey Gaida-Long Prairie
7 Adam Marthaler-Sauk Centre
7 Jon Gaebel-New Munich
7 Tyler Jendor-Sobieski
6 Six Players

BEST ERA
(26 IP Needed)
0.79 Tyler Jendro-Sobieski
1.21 Ty Reller-New Munich
1.77 Ethan Vogt-Elrosa/New Munich
1.78 Matt Imdieke-Meire Grove/Elrosa
1.80 Brad Mergen-Farming/St. Martin/NL-S
1.82 Ben Schroeder-St. Marin/Spring Hill
1.84 Jim Thull-New Munich
2.11 Logan Riedel-Long Prairie
2.18 Brock Cichon-Upsala
2.22 John Pogatchnik-St. Wendel
MOST INNINGS PITCHED
99.2 Chad Weiss-Lastrup
91.3 Ethan Vogt-Elrosa/New Munich
90.2 Tyler Jendro-Sobieski
88.2 Jim Thull-New Munich
84.2 Ethan Branum-Ft. Ripley
83.1 Ben Schroeder-St. Martin/Spring Hill
83.0 Mike Poser-Pierz Brewers
82.0 Ty Reller-New Munich
80.0 Brad Mergen-Farming/St. Martin/NL-S
76.3 Andy Bauer-Richmond/Lake Henry
MOST STRIKEOUTS
101 Ty Reller-New Munich
97 Tyler Jendro-Sobieski
96 Brad Mergen-Farming/St. Martin/NL-S
91 Ethan Branum-Ft. Ripley
86 Ben Schroeder-St. Martin/Spring Hill
84 Derek Thielen-Holdingford/Avon
77 Chad Weiss-Lastrup
72 Ethan Vogt-Elrosa/New Munich
71 Andy Bauer-Richmond/Lake Henry
65 Andy Bauer-Richmond
MOST WINS
10 Chad Weiss-Lastrup
10 Ethan Vogt-Elrosa
10 Tyler Jendro-Sobieski
7 Ben Schroeder-St. Martin
7 Brad Mergen-Farming/St. Martin/NL-S
7 Ethan Branum-Ft. Ripley
7 Kyle Schaible-Nisswa
7 Ty Reller-New Munich
6 Austin Schoenberg-Spring Hill
6 Brett Jenkins-Nisswa
6 Jason Roepke-Nisswa
MOST SAVES
3 Ben Schroeder-St. Martin
3 Brian Beuning-Sauk Centre/Pelican Rapids
3 Corey Schoenberg-Spring Hill
3 Luke Schumer-Nisswa
2 Nine Players

Listen to the Dick Putz Show


Sunday evenings 7:00 pm with Randy Rothstein
Featuring area scores and highlights from
baseball games played in Central Minnesota

KASM

Weekday Morning and Noontime News


with Joe Gill Farm Director

Aunt Saras Party Line


with Brad Mielke
Afternoons with Dan the Man

Radio

Sunday Morning with Cy


Afternoon Delight with Diane & Randy
Home of Husky Sports

320-845-2184 800-950-2148 Box 160 Albany MN

Page 24

May 4, 2016
MINNESOTA & WISCONSIN LAND SALES

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From a former
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the current, best
of luck to all area
teams this season!
Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.
CALL FOR A QUOTE 24/7.

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Amateur Baseball
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Contact the Sauk Centre


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Contact the Sauk Centre
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