Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Squeeze play!
When central North Dakota athletic bragging rights are on the line, no lead, regardless of how cushy, can be considered sufficient.
Carrington could have easily thought they were in the clear with a 9-2 advantage over the SNR Black Sox with just an inning-and-a-half to play last Monday, April 22, but the boys in black and silver had a few things up their polyester-knit sleeves.
The 'Sox went through a pair of Cardinal pitchers in the final frames to score a five-spot in the sixth, but it wasn't enough to take down the Foster County batsmen in a 10-7 decision at Jim Johnson Park in New Rockford.
Carrington's win kept them unbeaten in Region 3 play at 2-0, and improved their overall record to 5-0 for the season. The Black Sox fell in their initial Region game of the spring, and are now 4-2.
The Cards had five hits in the first inning, a triple by Drew Page and double by Lucas Geiszler among them, and plated four runs to take an early 4-0 lead on SNR starting pitcher Bo Belquist. Carrington would add a single run in the fourth on Geiszler's second two-bagger of the game to bring home Payton Smith, who himself hit a double in the inning.
SNR got on track in the bottom of the fifth with a pair of runs following Carrington starter Kyle Leapaldt's departure due to pitch count restrictions. Until that point, Leapaldt was dealing, racking up 10 strikeouts over 4 1/3 innings.
In that frame, the 'Sox got RBIs by Teddy Allmaras and Tucker Longnecker, the first on a groundout and the second coming from an error at shortstop. Drew Page would finish the inning for Carrington by getting two outs.
The visitors re-established momentum in the top of the sixth with a four-run rally against SNR reliever Allmaras, which featured RBI singles by Ethan Buskness and Brandon Larson, and capped off by Smith's opposite-field two-run double.
With the Cards turning to Buskness on the hill for the sixth inning, SNR got three of their first four batters on base. Following an error at first, Belquist's single scored two runs to make it 9-4, and Colt Soderholm and Longnecker also drove in run-scoring hits to help the 'Sox pull within 9-7 with one more inning to go.
SNR's own fielding miscue in the seventh gifted Carrington an insurance run on Larson's ground ball to short, scoring Page for the 10th and final run.
Geiszler drew the final three outs, and struck out the side to preserve the win for Carrington.
The Cards rapped 20 hits, with four players earning three each in the visitors' column. Three more Carrington batters had two in the victory.
Nathan Holzwarth had two hits for the Black Sox, including a double, as did Longnecker. SNR also got hits from Luke Ystaas and Johnny Grann, finishing with eight total.
Neither team fielded well, combining for five errors.
SNR will host Midkota/Dakota Prairie/Lakota/Griggs County Central today (April 29) in Region 3 play beginning at 4 p.m., then return to Jim Johnson Park on Thursday to entertain Kidder County for another conference test at 4:30.
Region 3 Baseball
Carrington 10, SNR 7 at New Rockford
Cgtn. 400 104 1- 10 20 2
SNR 000 025 0 - 7 8 3
Bo Belquist, Teddy Allmaras (5) and Luke Ystaas; Kyle Leapaldt, Drew Page (5), Ethan Buskness (6), Lucas Geiszler (7) and Geiszler, Leapaldt (7). W - Leapaldt. L - Belquist. SV - Geiszler.
SNR: Nathan Holzwarth 2-3, double, run; Tucker Longnecker 2-4, 2 RBI; Colt Soderholm 1-2, 2 runs, RBI; Belquist 1-4, run, 2 RBI; Ystaas and Johnny Grann 1-4; Nick Presnell run.
Carrington: Page 3-5, triple, double, 3 runs; Payton Smith and Geiszler 3-5, 2 doubles, run; Leapaldt 3-5; Hunter Mittleider and Buskness 2-4, run, RBI; Brandon Larson 2-5, run, 2 RBI; Tyson Lee and Nic Lyman one hit each.
