American
Legion
Minnesota Division I
Tournament
GAZETTE
| Volume 8, No. 3 | Northfield, Minnesota | Saturday, August 7, 2004 |
| Six
Remain in Hunt for 2004 State Title |
Friday's Stars | |
| Woodbury and Eden Prairie stayed
on top of the heap by advancing through the winner's
bracket on Friday. Woodbury countered a Grand Rapids rally with a bigger one of its own to win the early marquee game 10-6. In the night-cap, Apple Valley and Eden Prairie traded leads before Eden Prairie exploded for six runs int eh eighth inning for the win 14-8. Earlier in the day, Moorhead, Northfield, Richfield and Brainerd worked their way through the loser's bracket. In the evening games, host Northfield topped the evening games, host Northfield topped Moorhead 6-1 to become one of the six teams left in the double-elimination tournament. Brainerd defeated Richfield 5-4, eliminating Richfield from the tournament. |
In today's action all will play at Sechler Field in Northfield. Grand Rapids will play Brainerd at 10 a.m.; Nolrthfield will play Apple Valley at 1 p.m., and the winners of those games will play at 4 p.m. The two unbeatens, Woodbury and Eden Prairie, play off at 7 p.m. The final games will be played on Sunday with the first game at 11 and the chamionship game at 2 p.m. The winner of the 11 a.m. game will automatically qualify for national regional play. There is no double-elimination for the 2 p.m. game, and the winner is state champion. The two regional tournaments are in Harrison, Ohio and Omaha, Nebraska. |
Division I Northfield's Sam Healy had five hits including a homerun as his team won a pair of games. Woodbury Blue's Steve McKeown had a home run, a double and a single in a victory over Grand Rapids. - Richfield's Frank Frazier went four for five in a victory over Coon Rapids. - Brainerd's Chris Klabo went 3-4 in a 7-6 victory over Rochester. -Caleb Stevens of Anoka hit two home runs in a loss to Moorhead. Division II -Ely's Josh Mathson hit a grand slam home run in a 7-5 win over Jackson. - Sebeka's Zach Elter pitched a five-hitter to beat Stewartville 3-2. |
| Scribe Enters Legion Hall of Fame | Peter Grossman
Directs Local Effort by John Sherman |
| From Dundas to Sebeka, from Ely to
Willmar, if there is a ballpark in the state of
Minnesota, retired sportswriter Dick Seal has probably
covered a game there. While he no longer carries a camera or a notepad, Seal has a special reason to attend the State American Legion Tournament this week. During Wednesday night's Division I banquet a the Northfield Legion Post, he was inducted into the State American Legion Baseball Hall of Fame. In 30 yuears as a sportswriter, Seal's coverage of baseball, especially American Legion Baseball, was one of his strong suits. He never left a game in the sixth inning, and he put in the extra time to make sure he interviewed all of the key participants. Twice he was voted North Dakota Sportswriter of the Year, as his career to him to large and mid-sized towns in both North Dakota and Minnesota. "I grew up in Alexandria and started writing for the local paper when I was 14 or 15 years old." said Seal, who found time to play football and participate in track. He played American Legion Baseball in the summer. Shortly after graduating from Moorhead State College, he hung up the cleats and concentrated on becoming a sportswriter. Even while he was a college student, he worked 30 hours a week for the Fargo Forum and was also sports editor of his college newspaper. Shortly after graduating from Moorhead State, Seal entered the service with the U.S. Army. Following his discharge in April of 1962, he was anxious to beck back to his typewriter. After stints in Moorhead, Marshall and MAssillon, Ohio, Seal made the big jump to the big city with the Minneapolis Tribune. But after a year in Minneapolis, he decided big-city journalism was not for him. He returned to the Fargo Forum for 10 years, then spent nine years at the Jamestown Sun. "While I was covering Legion Baseball in Moorhead, I had some wonderful people to work with -- coaches Mike Jajostek and Bucky Burgau," said Seal. "Halvor Johnson was the Athletic Director, and he was just a super guy. I never thought Halvor was replaceable, then along came Joe Baker, and he has been a tremendous Athletic Director and state official." Seal has been official scorer at two State Legion Tournaments and two Region Tournaments. He's waiting for his World Series call. Seal and his wife JoAnn are avid Legion Baseball fans and enjoy many volunteer projects in their community, Sauk Rapids. "JoAnn was one of three nominees for the city's Citizen of the Year award," said Seal. |
Retired United States Army Colonel Pete
Grossman is the General in charge of the State American
Legion Tournaments in Northfield this week. The retired serviceman, who served in the Air Force and the Marines, as well as the Army, said that cooperation and teamwork are the keys to running a tournament, as Northfield hosts 24 teams in Divisions I and II from all parts of the state. "In the military, I worked with a lot of people," said Grossman. "And I always worked with young people, just like a teacher. I worked with them and I got them to work for me." Motivation was one of the keys to getting the best out of people, Grossman added. In the military, there is a need for discipline, but at the same time, he tried to motivate in a positive manner. Col. Grossman's military background has been helpful in planning and directing the State American Legion Baseball Tournaments. It began last September when Northfield was awarded the bids for the State Tournament. Even though it is unusual for one city to be awarded both State Tournaments, Division I and Division II, Gross man was confideent from the start that his committee would succeed. His first objective was to read everything he could about the State Tournament, so that he would be aware of every rule and requirement. He talked to previous hosts and sought their input. "I spent many hours reading and organizing the tournament," said Grossman. "Since I am retired, I had time to do a lot of the legwork myself, like lining up the fields and getting estimates from hotels." The other members of the host committee, Mike Allen, Will Brosz, Tom Graupmann, Peter Maus, Gerry Sackmaster, Orville Schmidt, Mick Scholl, Ron Wirmerskirchen and Post 84 Commander Robert Seitz have been instrumental in planning for a successful tournament week, Grossman said. The State Tournament is a concerted effort between the local host and State American Legion Baseball Committee members headed by State Director Darwin Berg. Grossman has found that the ability to think and act quickly is one of the keys to running a state tournament. Grossman said one of his goals, once he gets time to rest and reflect following the tournament, is to write an "after-action report." He fells that such a report will help next year's hosts understand what it takes to put on a first-class tournament. "We'll critique what we did this year and come up with some suggestions for the future," he said. "This year's tournament is going well because all the communities involved (Northfield, Dundas, Lonsdale and Faribault) want to do their best." Grossman said one of the big concerns this week is making ends meet financially. Grossman is proud of the tournament book, which is overflowing with ads from local businesses. "Ray Sanders, who used to work for KDHL Radio sold more than $10,000 in advertising for the book," said Grossmand. "A lot of people helped sell ads." "I figured we'd get about $10,000 in corporate donations, but we are a little short of that. It costs $50-some thousand to put on a tournament like this. The tournament is good for the economy in the community because people eat here, buy gas here and stay in the local hotels." Grossman said the experience of hosting a State American Legion Tournament has been very positive for the Northfield Legion Post, the community and all of the volunteers, who have generously given their time to the event. |
| Four
Unbeaten in Division II Tournament |
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| Sebeka, Jordan, Ely and
Benson advanced through Friday's opening round of the
Division II American Legion Baseball Tournament. The games are hosted by Northfield and played at Dundas. In today's action, Sebeka will play Jordan at 4 p.m. and Ely will play Benson at 7 p.m. Earlier in the day, Stewartville will play Jordan at 10 a.m. and Jackson will face Cannon Falls at 1 p.m. The consolation championship will be at 4 p.m. at the Northfield High School field. Ely is one of the favorites in the tournament with a 27-1 record this summer. The team's only loss was to West Duluth in a mid-season non-league game. Josh Mathson, Ely's shortstop, has been one of the premier players in the state with 17 home runs. His 17th homer was |
a grand-slam in a 7-5
first-round state tourney win over Jacson on Friday
afternoon. Jordan had the most exciting win the first day, defeating Win-E-Mac in an 11-inning barnburner. Each team's starting pitcher went the first nine innings. The winner of the State Tourney will qualify for the Central Plains National Regional in Milbank, South Dakota. The tournament will bein on Aug. 12 and conclude with the championship game on Aug. 16. Last year's Minnesota Division II State Champion was won by Paynesville. Ely was the third-place team in the 2003 tourney, while Nashwauk-Keewatin took runner-up honors. Ray DeZurik is the Vice Director in charge of Division II Legion Baseball. |
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| Sebeka's Etter
Shows Major League Heat |
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| When you live in a small town and can
throw a baseball 88 miles per hour, it isn't long before
your reputation spreads to other towns. Zach Etter, who has an 88 mph fastball, played high school ball at Menagha, but he is well known throughout northwestern Minnesota. In the summer, he plays American Legion Baseball for Sebeka, a neighboring town. Players on the Legion team hail from Menagha and Sebeka. |
"We're rivals in high
school sports, but we like playing together in Legion
ball," and Etter, who pitched Sebeka to a 3-2 win in
the first round of the Division II State Tournament
Friday morning at Dundas. "We have a lot of guys who
love to play baseball." During the regular season, while also playing for the town team, Etter logged only 19 and 2/3 innings on the mound, while teammate Tony Meech was the workhorse of the staff with 44 and 2/3 innings and a 4-1 record. Sebeka brought a 19-4 record to the State Legion Tournament. |
"I had good velocity today,"
said Etter, who kept Stewartville off-balance with his
high heat. "We just went out there and played hard.
My defense made some good plays behind me." Etter loves playing team sports and has an aptitude for excelling in whatever sport he plays. He was an all-section player in football and hockey and an All-State plahyer in baseball. He was named State Class A player of the year in high school baseball. |
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Division I
Game Summaries, Friday, August 6, 2004:
Game 17
Moorhead 8, Anoka 5
Moorhead overcame two home runs by Anoka's Caleb Stevens to
eliminate Anoka from the State Division I Tournament at Sechler
Field in Northfield Friday morning. Justin Pieterick led Moorhead
with a single, a double and four RBIs, while Corby Nelson had two
singles and a double. Drew Carmichael and Brock Gradt each had a
pair of singles. The victory boosted Moorhead's season record to
34-15. Anoka finished with a 34-11 mark.
| Moorhead | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 12 | 1 | ||||||||
| Anoka | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 1 |
Bushland and Nelson. Stevens, Skaa (4) and Ennenga. WP Bushland. LP Stevens.
Game 18
Northfield 12, Tri-City Red 2
Sam Healy and Jeremie Kruse led the Northfield assault with three
hits each as the host team eliminated Tri-City Red 12-2 in a game
shortened to seven innings by the 10-run rule. Northfield raised
its season record to 11-14. Tri-City Red finished the season with
a record of 22-23.
| Tri-City Red | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |||||||||
| Northfield | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 1 |
Raiolo, Herman (2), Moen (5), McCallum (5) and Field. Hoffman and Sather. SP Hoffman. LP Raiolo. Home runs: none.
Game 19
Richfield Reds 8, Coon Rapids 6
The Richfield Reds (25-8) stayed alive by defeating
Tenth District Champion Coon Rapids 8-6 Friday morning at Bell
Field in Faribault. Shortstop Frank Frazier had a hot bat for
Richfield as he wnet four for five. Teammate Dusty Hinz went two
for four with three RBIs. Blake Peterson, Kenny Beese and Matt
Mossey each had two hits for Coon Rapids, which finished the
season 46-12.
| Coon Rapids | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 3 | |||||||||
| Richfield Reds | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | X | 8 | 12 | 2 |
Blake, Snell (4), Le (5) and Peterson. Flood, Graf (5), Quale (9) and Ellis. WP Graf. LP Blake. Home runs: none
Game 20
Brainerd 7, Rochester A's 6
Chris Klabo went three for four with a three-run homer
as Brainerd eliminated the Rochester A's. Blake Eller added a
homer in the seventh inning to provide Brainerd's victory margin.
Bryan Denisen had two hits and two RBIs for the Rochester A's.
Aaron Jenkins allowed five hits in a seven-inning relief sting to
get the win for Brainerd, raising his season record to 4-1.
| Rochester A's | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 2 | |||||||||
| Brainerd | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | X | 7 | 12 | 1 |
Kasner, Denisen (6), Olson (8) and Hickey and Olofson (8). Mertens, Jenkins (3) and Holbrock. WP Jenkins. LP Kasner. Home runs: Klabo (Brainerd), Eller (Brainerd).
Game 21
Northfield 6, Moorhead 1
Jeremie "Kruse of Northfield threw a two-hitter to end
Moorhead's season at Bell Field in Faribault Friday afternoon.
Sam Healy led Northfield's attack with a home run and three RBIs
while Todd Mathison went two for five.
| Northfield | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 3 | |||||||||
| Moorhead | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Kruse and Sather. Chad Dahl, Johnson (3), Bauer (4) and Nelson. WP Kruse, LP Chad Dahl, Home runs: Healy (Northfield).
Game 22
Brainerd 5, Richfield Reds 4
Brainerd eliminated Richfield with pitcher Blake Eller
striking out nine Reds. Justin Huether hit a bases-loaded double
in the bottom of the eighth for Brainerd's winning margin. Bryan
Flood had two RBIs for Richfield
| Richfield Reds | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 11 | 3 | |||||||||
| Brainerd | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | X | 5 | 7 | 0 |
Eller, Huether (9) and Holbrook. Neal and Ellis. SP Eller. LP Neal. Home runs: none.
Game 23
Woodbury Blue 10, Grand Rapids 6
Steve McKeown hit a single, a double and a home run to lead
Woodbury Blue's high-powered attack in a 10-6 victory over Grand
Rapids Friday at Sechler Park in Northfield. Steve Englund added
a triple for the winners. Peter Goeman hit a triple and a single
for Grand Rapids.
| Grand Rapids | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 2 | ||||||||
| Woodbury Blue | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | X | 10 | 11 | 0 |
Magner, Hovet (6), Tavis (8) and Davis. Mark Helsper, Kloetzke (6), Matt Helsper (9) and Gram. WP Kloetzke. LP Hovet. Home runs: McKeown (Woodbury), Enright (Woodbury).
Game 24
Eden Prairie 14, Apple Valley 8
Eden Prairie fought back from an 8-4 deficit to score 10 runs in
the last two innings and defeat the Apple Valley 7y6ers 14-8.
Nate Hanson led the winners with three hits, while Justin Milo,
Troy Peterson and Pat Siering each had two. Josh Swenson and Josh
Nelson led Apple Valley with three hits each.
| Eden Prairie | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 14 | 13 | 4 | |||||||||
| Apple Valley | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 12 | 2 |
Hytjan, Anderson (6), Buteyn (8) and Pierce. Ruff, DeLaHunt (7), Chlan (8), Marschel (9) and Sovde.
Division II
Game Summaries, Friday, August 6, 2004
Game 11
Sebeka 3, Stewartville 2
Zack Etter pitched a five-hitter and drove home two runs with a
triple in Sebeka's 3-2 win over Stewartville at Dundas. Steve
Funk had three of Sebeka's nine hits.
| Stewartville | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | |||||||||||
| Sebeka | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 3 | 9 | 3 |
Dass and Hofer. Etter and Milbradt. WP Etter. LP Dass. Home runs: none.
Game 2
Jordan 4, Win-E-Mac 3
Starting pitchers Tyler Oakes of Jordan And Eric Hoffman
of Win-E-Mac each struck out 12 batters in nine innings of work.
Alex Beckman picked up the win in relief for Jordan.
| Win-E-Mac | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 2 | ||||||||||
| Jordan | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Hoffman, Violette (10) and Krueger. Oakes, Beckman, (10) and Theis. WP Beckman LP Violette. Home runs: none.
Game 3
Ely 7, Jackson 5
Josh Mathson's grand-slam home run help-ed Ely rally from a 5-0
deficit to defeat Jackson 7-5 in a game at Dundas Friday
afternoon. Mathson added a single to his round-trip blast, which
cleared the wall in deep right-center field. Ely raised its
season record to 27-1.
| Ely | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 2 | ||||||||||
| Jackson | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 1 |
Scott and Urbas. Krop-iak, Whisney (6), Hummell (6) and Rossow. WP Scott. LP Hummell. Home run: Mathson (Ely).
Game 4
Benson 7, Cannon Falls 5
Josh Svor helped Benson's attack with a two for three performance
and teammate, Aaron Hagen, drove in three runs. Aaron Stein went
two for four for Cannon Falls and Mike Bowen was two for three.
| Benson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 2 | ||||||||||
| Cannon Falls | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 2 |
WP Hughes. SP Winchell. Home Run: Marquart (Benson).
| Back to Tournament Home Page |
| The Gazette, Thursday, August 5, 2004 |
| The Gazette, Friday, August 6, 2004 (Thursday's Action) |
| The Gazette,
Sunday, August 8, 2004, Saturday and Sunday's action |
Last Updated: 8/6/04
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