American
Legion
Minnesota Division I
State Tournament
GAZETTE
| Volume 8, No. 2 | Northfield, Minnesota | Friday, August 6, 2004 |
| Four go unbeaten after 1st day | ||
| Four went unbeaten and four
went home after the first day in the 16-team
double-elimination Minnesota State American Legion
Division I Tournament held at four fields in the
Northfield area. Eden Prairie, Apple Valley, Woodbury and Grand Rapids all won their first two games and advanced through the winner's bracket. Alexandria, Duluth Lakeview, Sleepy Eye and Marshall all lost their first two games and were eliminated. Play will continue Friday at the Northfield Sechler Park and Faribault's Bell Field. Division II play will begin Friday at Dundas. |
Moorhead, Tri-City Red of
New Brighton, Richfield Reds, Brainerd, Coon Rapids,
Rochester A's, Anoka and Northfield are all 1-1 in the
tourney. The day featured seven shutouts as pitching ruled the diamonds. Today's slates of games includes Anoka vs. Moorhead, Northfield Vs. Tri-City, Coon Rapids vs. Richfield, and Rochester A's vs. Brainerd in the loser's bracket. The winners of those games will play again on Friday. In the winner's bracket, the two marquee games of the day at 4 and 7 p.m. at Sechler Park are Grand Rapids vs. Woodbury Blue and Apple Valley vs. Eden Prairie. |
Apple Valley, Woodbury Blue
and Eden P:rairie were ranked 1, 2, and 4 in the last
state poll. Cinderella from the north, Grand Rapids,
slipped under the pollster's radar and was unranked. There is a correction in the program that is being sold at the ballparks. Games 23 and 24 will be played at 4 and 7 p.m. respectively on Friday at Sechler Park. The program lists the wrong times. In the Division II program, the 1 p.m. game on Saturday will be playtede at Dundas, Field 1, and not on Field 2 as is indicated in the program. |
| Milo Swings a Big Stick for Eden Prairie by John Sherman |
| Justin Milo of the Eden
Prairie American Legion Baseball team is best known as a
hockey player, but that didn't stop him from swinging a
big stick in the first round of the State Division I
Tournament at Sechler Park on Thursday morning. Milo, who plays prep-school hockey at Shattuck-St. Mary's in Faribault, hit a single and a double in Eden Prairie's 11-1 victory over Alexandria. Milo hit a single to right field in the third inning and followed up with a double in the sixth inning. "I try to hit the ball where it is pitched," said Milo. "It helps me to know that I can hit to all fields." :I like a left-handed hitter in the No. 2 hole," said Eden Prairie coach Gary Morgan, "and Justin does a good job there." While he excels in baseball with a .359 batting average, Milo is even more dominant on the hockey rink. He had 37 goals in 6y0 games at Shattuck-St. Mary's last season. Several of his coaches from the Faribault school were on hand to see him play in the State Legion Tournament Thursday. |
"The guys I play ball with in Eden
Prairie are great guys," said Milo. "We have a
good run going this season. We really come on in the big
games, and, hopefully, we can make it to regionals." Eden Prairie's deep pitching staff will have a lot to say about he chance for a region berth. "We have four pitchers we use in rotation," said Morgan. "They are Buteyn, Andy Hanson, Cole Hytjan and Brian Morgan. On any day, any one of the four can have a great game." Buteyn, who has a 4-3 record, was chosen to start the first game of the tournament and held Alexandria to four hits. "I went mostly with my fastball," said Buteyn. "I was able to keep the ball down, so I stayed out of danger. I took it one pitch, one inning at a time." A big lay was a three-run homer by Buteyn's catcher, Joe Pierce, which gave Eden Prairie a 5-1 lead in the third inning. "That was Joe's fifth or sixth homer of the season," said Coach Morgan, "and he has quite a few doubles. He can hit the ball with authority." |
| Host Team
Makes Mark in Tournament Opening Day |
Stars of the Day - Chuck Lukanen of Apple
Valley 76ers pitched a complete game to beat Anoka 3-0. |
|
| Going into the first round of the State
Division I American Legion Baseball Tournament Thursday
at Sechler Park in Northfield, host team coach Chris
Stanton had one goals for his Northfield team. "Some people don't believe that a host team belongs, but we wanted to prove to others that we belong here," said Stanton. It didn't take long as the local ball club defeated Brainerd 6-5 in the first round. Later in the day, Northfield played another competitive game in a 4-0 loss to Eden Prairie. Northfield's record after yesterday's split stands at 10-14. "We're not happy just being here," said Stanton. "We play in a very tough league in the Third District and we had the opportunity to play some very good teams. We split Apple Valley, Lakeville and Chaska in league play. It's cool to be in this atmosphere at state, playing in a field with some of the perennial teams. At this state of the season, we're comfortable playing anyone." |
Northfield is not the best hitting team
in the state tournament, but getting the clutch hits has
been a team trademark. Brandon Sather, the catcher, leads
Northfield with a .385 batting average. Josh Maus is
batting .338 and Sam Healy is batting .328. "The top four guys in our order are solid," said Stanton, a former Northfield player. "We try to manufacture runs with hit and run plays and bunts." Stanton said the Northfield team spent the regular season preparing for the State Tournament. "In the state tournament games, we showed a higher intensity level than usual," the coach noted. One benefit of the first-round win was that Northfield got to play under the lights in front of a big crowd at Sechler Park Thursday night. It's a memory the players will remember for many years. Northfield will takeon Tri-City Red of New Brighton in a game at 1 p.m. Friday at Sechler Park. |
|
| Division II Standouts
Anxious to Play by John Sherman |
||
| When the Division II State American
Legion Baseball Tournament opens on Friday at Dundas, two
players named Josh will be in the spotlight. Josh Mathson of District 8 champion Ely has flexed his muscles by hitting 16 home runs this summer, while Josh Remer of District 9 chamion Win-E-Mac has a 5-0 pitching record. "We've had a pretty good season, " Mathson said at the Division II banquet at the Northfield Legion Post Thursday night. "We're 26-1 and it's a lot of fun to play with the guys on this team." West Duluth was the only team to defeat Ely this season. It isn't surprising |
that Ely has had a good season, since it
returns all but three players from a team that finished
third in the Division II State Tournament last summer. Ely earned its way back to state with a district tournament victgory over a very capable Nashwauk-Keewatin team. "Pitching and defense are our strong points," said Mathson, who plays shortstop and pitches. "One though nine in the order, everyone can hit." Matheson will continue his career nextseason at Iowa Central Community College. Ultimately, he would like to go on to a four-year school, and with his power, who knows? Perhaps he will be one of those rare players who goes on to play in the pro ranks. |
Remer plays outfield and is a member of a strong p;itching staff for Win-E-Mac, which has a 20-2 record. "The only teams we lost to this season are Fertile and Crookston," he said after the banquet. "We've got a deep pitching staff with four quality starters, and lately our hitting has been coming around." Remer noted that all four of Win-E-Mac's top pitchers are tough to score against. "All of our guys have ERAs under 2.00," he said. Win-E-Mac advanced to state by defeating New York Mills in the district tournament finals. |
Game Summaries, Thursday, August 5, 2004:
Game 1
Grand Rapids 2, Moorhead 0
Danny Klous pitched a four-hit shutout to lead Grand
Rapids to a 2-0 win over the Moorhead Blues ina first-round game
at Dundas. Matt Bowar of Moorhead allowed only five hits. Sam
Shaw hit a double in the bottom of the second and scored on a
single by J.J. Swalboski. Grand Rapids added an insurance run in
the sixth inning. Jake MAgner had a double for the winners and
Swalboski had two hits.
| Moorhead | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | ||||||||
| Grand Rapids | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | x | 2 | 5 | 3 |
Bower and Chris Dahl, Klaus and S. Davis. WP Klous. LP Bowar. Home runs: none.
Game 2
Coon Rapids 7, Marshall 3
Dylan Blake went three for four and drove in two runs
for Tenth District champion Coon Rapids in a 7-3 first-round
victory over the Marshall Mudcats. Phil Ghiszoni also had three
hits for the winners, who got a winning performance on the mound
from Ryan Fixell. Nick Gjorvad had three hits for Marshall.
| Marshall | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 3 | |||||||||
| Coon Rapids | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | X | 7 | 10 | 0 |
Marks and VanOverbeke. Fixell, Brandon Peterson (7) and Blake Peterson. WP Fixell. LP Marks. Home runs: none.
Game 3
Woodbury Blue 11, Tri-City Red 8
Trailing 7-1 after four innings in a first-round game at
Lonsdale, Woodbury Blue came up with 10 runs in its final four at
bats to defeat Tri-City Red 11-8. Tyler Kipke led Woodbury's
attack with a home run and a double, while teammate Matt Enright
also hit a home run. Matt Frakes had a home run for Tri-City Red.
| Tri-City Red | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 5 | 2 | |||||||||
| Woodbury Blue | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | X | 11 | 9 | 1 |
Weber, Raiolo (6), Herman (8) and Moen. Matt Helsper, Wagern (5) and Wilsoln. WP Wagner. LP Weber. Home runs: Frakes (Tri-City Red), Kipke (Woodbury), Enright (Woodbury).
Game 4
Rochester A's 10, Sleepy Eye 3
The Rochester A's got most of their pitching staff
involved in a 10-3 win over Sleepy Eye, as five different players
got a turn on the mound. Starting pitcher Aaron Craig hit a home
run for Rochester and Jay Kasner added a homer. Andy Cook hit a
home run for Sleepy Eye. Rochester (32-10) is the defending
American Legion World Series champion.
| Sleepy Eye | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 1 | |||||||||
| Rochester A's | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | X | 10 | 9 | 0 |
B. Braulick, Krfzmarzick (2) and C. Reinarts. Craig, Sursely (4), Anderson (5), Hoffman (8), Ofofson (9) and Garza. WP Sursely. LP B. Braulick. Home runs: Kasner (Rochester A's), Craig (Rochester A's) Cook, Sleepy Eye.
Game 5
Anoka 11, Duluth Lakeview 4
Isaac Kindt and Dan Skog hit home runs to pace Anoka to
an 11-4 win over Duluth Lakeview in a first-round game at
Faribault's Bell Field. Aaron Dehn turned in a solid pitching
effort for the winners, allowing seven hits and striking out nine
in eight inings. Carl Siefvert and Andy Solin hit doubles for
Duluth Lakeview. Chris Siljendahl of Duluth Lakeview made the
defensive play of the game when he robbed Anoka's Kyle Olstad of
a home run in the seventh inning.
| Anoka | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 16 | 1 | ||||||||
| Duluth Lakeview | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 2 |
Dehn, Pollack (9) and Ennenga. Gow, Solin (9) and Maida. SP Dehn. LP Gow. Home runs: Kindt (Anoka), Skog (Anoka).
Game 6
Apple Valley 1, Richfield Reds 0
Andy Heieie pitched eighgt innings of shutout ball for
Apple Valley beforfe Jeremy Chlan came on to get the save in the
ninth. Chlan drove in the only run for Apple Valley with a
sacrifice fly in the seventh inning. Kris Pulford went tow for
four for Apple Valley.
| Richfield Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | |||||||||
| Apple Valley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | X | 1 | 4 | 0 |
Graf and Ellis. Heieie, Chlan (9) and Sovde. SP Heieie. LP Graf. Home runs: None
Game 7
Eden Prairie 11, Alexandria 1
Eden Prairie improved its season record to 26-14 with an
11-1 first round victory over Alexandria on Thursday morning at
Sechler Park in Northfield. John Buteyn hand-cuffed Alexandria,
allowing only four hits in a game shortened to seven innings by
the 10-run rule. He had six strikeouts and no walks. Eden Prairie
catcher Joe Pierce hit a three-run home run, while teammates Andy
Dulaney and Justin Milo each had a single and a double.
| Eden Prairie | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 10 | 1 | |||||||||||
| Alexandria | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 |
Buteyn and Pierce. Wendland, Stier (4) Petro (7), Modahl (7) and Schmidt. WP Buteyn. LP Wendland. Home run: Pierce (Eden Prairie).
Game 8
Northfield 6, Brainerd 5
Northfield scored the winning run in the top of the
ninth inning when winning pitcher Jeremie Kruse singled to score
Brandon Sather. The host team took a 5-2 lead with four runs in
the top of the fifth inning, but Brainerd battled back to tie the
game with a run in the fifth inning and two more in the eighth.
Kruse and Todd Mathison had two hits each for the winners and
Adam Becker had two RBI's.
| Northfield | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 3 | |||||||||
| Brainerd | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 3 |
Niebuhr, Kruse (8) and Sather. Huether and Holbrook. WP Huether. Home runs: None.
Game 9
Moorhead 6, Marshall 0
Ryan Williams of the Moorhead Blues raised this season
record to 7-3 with a four-hit shutout of Marshall in a
second-round game. Chad Dahl hit a home run for the Blues and
Ryan Krause went four for four for the winners.
| Moorhead | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 13 | 1 | ||||||||
| Marshall | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
Williams and Nelson. Shakowski, Bruns (7) and VanOverbeke. WP Williams. LP Shakoski. Home runs: Dahl (Moorhead).
Game 10
Grand Rapids 5, Coon Rapids 4
Mark Henry was the hitting star with a three for five
performance in Grand Rapids' 5-4 11-inning victory over Coon
Raids. Stephen Davis added two hits for the winners. Nick Le and
Kevin Johnson each had two hits for Coon Rapids.
| Coon Rapids | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 3 | |||||||||
| Grand Rapids | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 2 |
Besse, Massey (8) and Lindstrom. Swalboski, Klaus (8), Magner (11) and S. Davis. WP Magner. LP Massey. Home runs: none.
Game 11
Tri-City Red 13, Sleepy Eye 7
Evan Eid of Tri-City Red had a good day at the plate
with a single and a triple, while teammate Justin Hemauer had a
homer and a single.
| Sleepy Eye | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 3 | |||||||||
| Tri-City Red | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 13 | 10 | 2 |
Hillesheim, Gangelhoff (5) and Reinarts. Ries, Herman (6), Moen (7) and Raiolo (9). WP Ries. LP Hillesheim. Home runs: Hemauer (Tri-City Red).
Game 12
Woodbury Blue 7, Rochester A's 0
Dan Starken and Kirk Ingram combined to pitch a two-hit
shutout as Woodbury Blue advanced to the winners' bracket
semifinals with a 7-0 win over the defending Wold Series Champion
Rochester A's. Catcher Sean Wilson of Woodbury sparked his team's
offense with a pair of doubles.
| Rochester A's | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |||||||||
| Woodbury Blue | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | X | 7 | 7 | 2 |
Starken, Ingram (7) and Wilson. Craig, Hoffmann and Olofson. WP Starken. LP Craig.
Game 13
Richfield Reds 4, Duluth Lakeview 0
Tate Quale pitched a four-hit shutout as the Richfield
Reds rebounded from a first-round loss with a 4-0 win over Duluth
Lakeview. Quale struck out five and walked two. Frank Frazier hit
a key double for the winners. Mason Reinhart and Bryan Flood
added RBIs.
| Duluth Lakeview | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | |||||||||
| Richfield Reds | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | X | 4 | 10 | 0 |
Heggested and Maida. Quale and Neal. SP Quale. LP Heggested.
Game 14
Apple Valley 3, Anoka 0
Chuck Lukanen raised his record to 10-0 with a complete
game in Apple Valley's 3-0 victory over Anoka. Ryan Langlais and
Josh Swenson each had two hits for the 76ers, while Mike Loberg
had two hits for Anoka in the winners' bracket semifinal game at
Bell Field in Faribault.
| Anoka | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |||||||||
| Apple Valley | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 3 | 8 | 0 |
Loberg, Pollack (3) and Ennenga. Lukanen and Sovde. SP: Lukanen. LP Loberg. Home runs: none.
Game 15
Brainerd 5, Alexandria 3
Tony Parrish went three for four with a double and
reached base four times in Brainerd's win over Alexandria. Adian
Kummet was the winner on the mound, going 8 and 2/3 innings.
| Alexandria | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | |||||||||
| Brainerd | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 5 | 8 | 0 |
Curry and Schmidt. Kummet, Jenkins (9) and Holbrook. WP Kummnet. LP Curry. Home runs: none.
Game 16
Eden Prairie 4, Northfield 0
Andrew Dulaney and Justin Milo each hit a double and a
single for Eden Prairie, which advanced to the winners'
semifinals with a 4-0 victory over Northfield. Andy Hanson
pitched a seven-hit shutout against the host team.
| Northfield | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | |||||||||
| Eden Prairie | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | X | 4 | 8 | 0 |
Mathison, Dimick (8) and Sather. Hanson and Pierce. WP Hanson. LP Mathison.
Additional Issues:
| The Gazette, Thursday, August 5, 2004 |
| The Gazette, Saturday, August 7, 2004 |
| The Gazette, Sunday, August 8, 2004 |
| 2004 State Tournament Homepage |
Last updated: 8/06/04
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