American Legion
Minnesota Division I
State Tournament
GAZETTE

 

 

Volume 11, No. 4 Bloomington, Minnesota Sunday, August 12, 2007
Rain washes out marquee game
Coon Rapids in final three		 Fairfax and Jordan
in Division II Title Game
Rain washed away the marquee game of the day at the Minnesota American Legion State Division I Baseball Tournament Saturday night.

Eden Prairie and Apple Valley were just getting ready to play at Red Haddox Field in Bloomington, when a downpour quickly made the field unplayable. The two teams were both undefeated and were vying for one of the two regional tournaments to which Minnesota will send teams.

The game of unbeatens will now be held at 12:30 Sunday at Haddox Field.		 In earlier action, Coon Rapids fought its way through the loser's bracket to become the third finalist in the state tournament. Coon Rapids defeated Cambridge 8-1, and then topped Centennial 21-10. Earlier, Centennial had beaten Willmar 4-3, also in the loser's bracket.

The loser of the 12:30 game will then play Coon Rapids in a 3:30 game. The winner of that game will also qualify for regions. The time of the championship game has yet to be determined.		 In the Division II Tournament being held in Ely this weekend, Jordan and Fairfax will be vying for the state championship today.

Jordan beat Ely 3-0 and Fairfax topped Red Lake Falls 9-6 to advance in the single elimination tournament.

In the consolation bracket earlier in the day, Nashwauk-Keewatin beat Bertha-Hewitt 9-5, and LaCrescent defeated Adrian 12-5. In the consolation title game, LaCrrescent defeated Nashwauk-Keewatin 11-5.

In the other game today, Ely will play Red Lake Falls in the third-place game at the Ely ballpark.
Coon Rapids hitters ride hot streak
Bats heat up as tournament continues

By John Sherman
Jake Poehler and Kyle Harrison of the Coon Rapids American Legion Baseball team are leading an impressive hit parade at the state tourney.

Going into Sunday's games, Coon Rapids needs one more win to earn a return trip to a regional tournament. If Poehler, Harrison and their teammates come to swing the bats, it might just happen.

Poehler mashed Burnsville's pitching for seven RBIs in a 20-17 victory riday night at Alimagnet Park in Burnsville. In the same game, Harrison was hot with a five-for-seven performance.

"Burnsville wouldn't go away," said Poehler. "We had to keep hitting."

That's no problem for Coon Rapids. Harrison has been especially hot this week. He had four hits in his team's victory over Mankato.

When Coon Rapids eliminated Cambridge 8-1 Saturday morning. Poehler had two hits and showed off his string arm by throwing a runner out at the plate. Andy Evans pithed a complete 		game for Coon Rapids, striking out six and walking just one.

"I have been waiting all season to throw someone out at the plate," said Poehler, who plays side-by-side with center fielder Harrison.

Coon Rapids returned to familiar territory Saturday afternoon by eliminating Centenial 21-10 at Red Haddox Field.

The inspirational return of slugger Andrew Kinney boosted the Cardinals. He was sidelined in the first game of the tournament, when a pitch from Tri-City's Seth Rosin hit him on the elbow. Kinney is one of the top home run hitters in the state with 19.

Coon Rapids' standout against Centennial was catcher Matt Oberfoell, who had six RBIs.

"Matt has been my No. 9 hitter for two years," said coach Tom Yelle. "He does a great job in that spot."

Harrison said this has been a very enjoyable season. "We have great chemistry," he noted. 		"We're a bunch of friends who have fun playing baseball. Tom Yell is a good coach, and he knows what he's talking about."

"Coach Yelle really works with us on hitting and he helps us straighte out our hitting problems," said Porter.

Yelle's hitting expertise seems to put Coon Rapids in the running for the state Legion title year after year. His club won the state championship at Rochester in 2001. No matter what else happens during a Coon Rapids game, it is almost certain Yelle's boys will hit the ball hard.

Harrison and Poehler have been running neck and neck for the team batting lead al season. Harrison entered the state tourney with a .394 batting mark, and Poehler was hitting .392. With solid performances at state, both boys have lifted their averages above the .400 mark. Preston Ghizoni, another steady Coon Rapids hitter, entered the tournament with a .388 mark and has a five-for-five game to his credit.

Coon Rapids' victory over Centennial was the 50th of the season against 12 losses.


Kyle Harrison fouls a bunt attempt.
Cambridge has ironman
By John Sherman


Ironman Mike Valentyn caught all 35 innings for Cambridge.

 Although he wanted his team's tournament run to continue beyond Saturday morning, catcher Mike Valentyn of Cambridge might have secretly breathed a sigh of relief, when his team was eliminated by Coon Rapids 8-1 at Red Haddox field.

Valentyn, the Cambridge "Iron Man," was wearing down. At the end of the Coon Rapids game, he had caught 35 innings in three days.

"I am pretty much the only catcher, " said Valentyn after the game. "I caught almost every inning this year, except when I went up north fishing for a week."

Valentyn is a scrappy catcher, who enjoys making tag plays at the plate. He had two chances against Coon Rapids. On one, he secured the ball and made a tag up the line. On the other, the ball arrived a split-second too late for him to make a tag.

Back when he was 20 years old, Valentyn became a catcher, almost by necessity. "I was too slow to play anything else," he said.

Valentyn said the highlight of the state tourney was pulling out a 10-9 win over Holy Angels in the second round. Cambridge fiished 2-2 at state, earning sixth place.

There are a number of key players on the team. Sam Solberg led the team in hitting with a season average of .478, and Ramberg batted .457 with an 8-0 pitching record. Mitch Dunbar had a .433 batting average, and Tom Kordiak hit .426. Valentyn hit a modest .257, but his value to the team hinged more on defense than leadership than on hitting stats.

Next summer, Valentyn and Ramberg will return to reunite as a battery. Ramberg was terrific in a 4-1 victory over Perham in the first round at state, as he posted a tournament-high 15 strikeouts. The slender lefty is already throwing his fastball in the high 80's, and Perham's hitters just couldn't catch up to it.

"Joe makes it easy for me when he's throwing like that," said Valentyn.

The chemistry between the two is obvious, and with good reason. "I've been throwing to Mike sine we were 10 years old," said Ramberg. Both boys will be seniors at Cambridge High School in the fall.

This has been a magical year for Cambridge Legio, culminating of course with the state tournament. Cambridge played well and also scored high marks with the tourament committee.

Ninth District Baseball Director, Roger Niebeling, remarked,"Did you see those Cambridge players? Every one of them came over to thank the Directors after their last game."

The Cambridge boys were truly grateful for the chance to play in Bloomington, and they didn't miss a moment of the experience.

"We have a lot of fun on this team," said Valentyn. "We goof around, give each other a hard time and have a lot of fun....and we get after it at the plate."
Stars of the Day
Zac Sather of Coon Rapids had a triple and a single in an 8-1 victory over Cambridge.

Andy Evans of Coon Rapids went all nine innings in the win over Cambridge.

Eric Kallevig had the winning hit in the bottom of the 10th inning, as Centennial topped Willmar 4-3.		 Tyler Horning of Willmar had three hits, including a double, in the loss to Centennial.

Matt Oberfoell of Coon Rapids had six RBIs in a 21-10 victory over Centennial Saturday at Red Haddox Field.

Corey Johnson had two doubles and a single for Coon Rapids in the win over Centennial.		 Jake Poehler of Coon Rapids had a solo homer among his three hits against Centennial.

Brothers Nick and Kyle O'Shea of Centennial hit home runs in the loss to Coon Rapids.


Game Summaries, Saturday, Aug. 11, 2007

Game 25
Coon Rapids 8, Cambridge 1
Zac Sather, Brett Boxwell, Brandon Baumgartner, and Jake Poehler each had two hits in the victory over Cambridge. Catcher Mike Valentyn of Cambridge had three hits. Coon Rapids' right-hander Andy Evans scattered 10 hits to get the win on the mound.

Cambridge     0 0 0   0 0 0   1 0 0       1   10   1  
Coon Rapids     1 1 0   0 6 0   0 0 X       8   12   1  

O'Connor, Auth (5), Duong (6) and Valentyn. Evans and Morrissette. SP-Evans, LP-O'Connor.


Game 26
Centennial 4, Willmar 3 (10 innings)
Eric Kallevig had two hits, including the game winner, for Centennial, while teammate Craig Henry also had two hits. Kyle O'Shea allowed one hit in four innings to get the pitching win. Tyler Horning had three hits and two RBIs.

Willmar     1 0 2   0 0 0   0 0 0   0       3   6   0
Centennial     0 0 0   0 0 0   3 0 0   1       4   8   0

Jacobson, Scheffler (8) and Malmgren. Rodeck, K.O'Shea (7) and Henry. WP-K.O'Shea. LP-Scheffler


Game 27
Coon Rapids 21, Centennial 10 (7 innings)
Coon Rapids hammered out 17 hits to eliminate Centennial Saturday at Red Haddox Field. Midway through the game, Centennial had the lead, thanks to home runs from brothers Nick and Kyle O'Shea. Matt Oberfoell drove in six runs.

Centennial     0 4 3   3 0 0   0       10   6   4  
Coon Rapids     0 4 0   3 7 3   4       21   17   1  

Meacham, Lehnen (7), Hacket (8) and Braaten. Russell, Palmer (1), Levisen (4), Herold (9), Anderson (9) and Nelser. WP Meacham. LP Russell. Home Runs: Charles Dubanoski (Burnsville); Aaron Senne (Rochester Redhawks).

Game Summaries, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2007

Apple Valley and Eden Prairie will be Minnesota's representatives in national regional play, following action Sunday int he Minnesota American Legion State Division I Baseball Tournament in Bloomington. The State Champion, however, has yet to be determined. A game will be played between the teams at Red Haddox Field in Bloomington at noon on Monday. A rainout on Saturday night forced the tournament into an extra day.

In action Sunday, Apple Valley beat Eden Prairie 12-6, and Eden Prairie came back in the second game to defeat Coon Rapids 11-5 to advance to the title game. Minnesota sends two representatives to the national regionals. One team will play in Menominee, Michigan, and the other team will play in Marshall, MN, with the games beginning on August 16th. The World Series will be played in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, beginning August 24th.

In Ely, Jordan defeated Fairfax 10-3 to win the Minnesota Division II American Legion state tourney.

Game 28
Apple Valley 12, Eden Prairie 6
Cory Eul's homer keyed a six-run fourth inning as the 76ers defeated the defending State champion, Eden Prairie. Eul had three hits, and teammates Steve McGuiggan and Scott Lyden each scored three runs. Lyden went three-for-five in the No. 9 spot. Right-hander Kent Huls went all the way on the mound for Apple Valley. Catcher, Dan Dunleavy, went three-for-four for Eden Prairie.

Apple Valley     0 0 0   6 0 2   0 1 3     12   11   4    
Eden Prairie     1 0 0   4 0 0   0 0 1     6   12   0    

Huls and Buck. Eicher, T.Miller (6), Bado (8), Hericks (9) and Dunleavy. WP-Huls. LP-Eicheer. HR-Cory Eul, Apple Valley.

Game 29 - SEMI-FINAL GAME (LOSERS')
Eden Prairie 11, Coon Rapids 5

Kyle Geason hit two homers, including a grandslam, as Eden Prairie earned a regional berth and a chance to play Apple Valley for the title Monday at noon. Geason's productive day included seven RBIs. Lucas Skjefte and Adam Heimer each had two hits for the winners, and Madison Boer pitched seven innings for the win. Catcher, Matt Oberfoell, led Coon Rapids with four hits.

Coon Rapids   0 0 0   0 1 0   3 0 1       5   9   1    
Eden Prairie   1 5 0   0 5 0   0 0 X       11   8   1    

Frogner, Hable (2), Baumgartner (6) and Oberfoell. Boer, Hericks (8) and Dunleavy. WP-Boer. LP-Frogner. HR-Geason, Eden Prairie (2).

Game Summaries, Monday, Aug. 13, 2007

Eden Prairie won the 2007 Minnesota American Legion Division I Tournament Monday with an 18-3 victory over Apple Valley. It was Eden Prairie's 4th consecutive State title.

Both teams will advance to national American Legion regional play. Eden Prairie will travel to the Central Plains Regional in Marshall, MN, where games will begin on Thursday, August 16th. Apple Valley will play in the Great Lakes Regional at Menominee, Michigan, beginning the same date. The winners of the eight-team regionals will advance to the World Series in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, beginning August 24th.

Game 30 - CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Eden Prairie 18, Apple Valley 3 (7 innings)

Danny Miller pitched a five-hitter for his second win of the state Legion tourney as Eden Prairie won its fourth straight Division I championship. Following the championship game, Miller received the MVP award. Miller and Kyle Geason both won their third state title, while playing for Eden Prairie. For the second day in a row, Geason hit a grand-slam homer. He went three-for-five in the champioship game. Lead-off batter Lucas Skjefte helped the Eden Prairie offense with three hits and four runs. Apple Valley's leader was Cory Eul, who went two-for-three with a walk and scored a run.

Eden Prairie   0 8 1   0 3 1   5       18   16   1
Apple Valley   2 0 0   0 1 0   0       3   5   1

Miller and Mohn. Elioff, Sampson (3) and Buck. WP-Miller. LP-Elioff. HR-Geason, Eden Prairie.

Additional Issues:

2007 Tournament Home Page
The Gazette, Thursday, August 9, 2007
The Gazette, Friday, August 10, 2007 (Thursday's Action)
The Gazette, Saturday, August 11, 2007 (Friday's Action)

 

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