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Winthrop Does It to Tigers Again
| 7/26/05 | 1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
| Winthrop | 0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
5 |
10 |
1 |
| Belle Plaine | 0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
10 |
0 |
Dan Weldon was tagged out at home while attempting to score the tying run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, ending the Tigers’ season and giving the Winthrop Eagles a 5-4 victory. With the bases loaded, two outs, and a 5-3 Winthrop lead, Pat Schultz hit a ground ball to first that was booted by Chris Fahey. Tim Schuster scored from third and Weldon, who began the play at second, was not far behind. But Fahey gathered himself and threw a perfect strike home to nab Weldon, on what was a close call at the plate.
In a case study in frustration, Winthrop beat the Tigers in the playoffs for the third consecutive year, while over that time the Tigers are 5-0 against the Eagles during the regular season. In those five victories, Belle Plaine has outscored Winthrop 52-13. However, during the playoffs, the Eagles have gone 3-0 and spanked the Tigers by a combined margin of 30-11.
Winthrop entered the game as the fourth seed in the CCL-White playoffs at 4-13, and 6-21 overall. Of course, Winthrop also went 4-18 in league play two years ago, before catching fire and taking it all the way to the second round of the 2003 state tournament.
Dave Kreft started on the mound, taking his second loss of the playoffs after entering with a 5-1 mark. The veteran righty went seven innings officially, but it was the first batter of the eighth – pitcher Scott Palmer – who took him yard to give Winthrop what proved to be the decisive run.
Palmer threw the complete game, yielding ten hits and four walks while striking out seven. He recorded his biggest punch-out of the ninth when with runners on second and third and one out, he won the battle with his counterpart, Kreft.
Weldon was the hitting ace for Team Tigertown, lacing a two-run homer in the third to make it 2-2, and stroking a one-out double in the ninth to give Belle Plaine a golden opportunity to tie it up again.
Both teams played well defensively – the only error being Fahey’s boot on the last play of the ninth.
HOFMANN, SCHULTZ DRAFTED:
Brownton, who knocked off the Tigers 4-3 in the first round, won the CCL-White Championship by beating #1 seed St. Peter twice – 5-4 in the semi-finals, and 15-1 in the championship game. (See bracket for full details.) Brownton selected Pat Schultz of Belle Plaine, and Scott Palmer of Winthrop, while St. Peter countered with Shane Hofmann of Tigeritaville, and Randy Walsh of Gaylord. Congratulations to Pat and Shane, and good luck!
REGION 4C ACTION IN BELLE PLAINE:
Unfortunately, Team Tigertown will not be taking part in the festivities at Tiger Park, but Region 4C action will commence this Saturday and Sunday (Aug. 6 & 7), with games at 2:00 pm and 4:30 pm each day. Brownton and Minnesota Lake, the #2 seed from the 13-60 League, will play Saturday’s first game, followed by St. Peter and the 13-60’s #1 seed, the defending Class ‘C’ champion Blue Earth Pirates.
The two state tournament representatives from Region 4C will be determined the following Saturday (Aug. 13) in Belle Plaine, with one potential seeding game played Sunday, if necessary.
2005 TIGER OPEN
The 2005 Tiger Open will be held Saturday, September 17 th at Valley View Golf Club, with a 1:00 pm shotgun start. The format is a four-person, 18-hole scramble, so start assembling your team today. We are still determining the cost, but looking to lower it from last year’s rate to encourage greater participation. Look for details soon in an upcoming Herald.
2005 SEASON-IN-REVIEW:
Team Tigertown finished with a 9-8 record in the Carver Central, good for 2 nd place in the White Division, while posting an overall record of 15-20. The Tigers scheduled aggressively by facing a stellar non-league schedule, and paid for it by winning only two of their first eleven ballgames. From that point on, however, the Tigers played winning baseball, going 13-11 (.542) the rest of the way.
Belle Plaine enjoyed participating in the Tigertown Classic, and really made hay the following weekend, winning three games in two days to claim the Consolation Championship of the 16-team Miller Lite Invitational (held in Arlington and Green Isle).
Individually, Pat Schultz took home the batting title with a .351 batting average, this after hitting .353 and .358 the previous two campaigns. (Pat – you’re starting to fall off.) Schultz edged out Dan Weldon (.338) and Mike Dhaene (.336), who both came on strong in the second half.
Dave Kreft led the team with five wins, and posted the best ERA among starters at 2.31. Among relievers, Ryan Witt and Brett Kruschke didn’t allow an earned run all year, although Witt’s 21.2 innings stack up a bit more impressively than Kruschke’s 1.0. (These are the numbers – I just report ‘em.)
Thanks to everyone who supported the Tigers this year, and we’ll see you again next spring!
| Belle Plaine TIGERS (15-20) | ||||||
AB |
R |
H |
RBI |
BB |
Avg. |
|
| Weldon, cf | 5 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
.338 |
| Kreft, p-3b | 4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
.194 |
| Dhaene, ss | 3 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
.336 |
| P. Schultz, c | 4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
.353 |
| Huber, 2b-lf | 4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.299 |
| Zellmann, 1b | 4 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
.246 |
| Hartmann, dh | 4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.167 |
| S. Hofmann, rf | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.179 |
| Kruschke, pr | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
| Schuneman, lf | 3 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
.222 |
| Witt, p | 1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.19 |
| A. Hoffman, 3b-2b | 3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.189 |
| Schuster, ph | 0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
.260 |
| TOTALS | 35 |
4 |
10 |
2 |
5 |
.286 |
| 2B – Weldon. 3B – none. HR – Weldon. | ||||||
| HBP – none. SB –P.Schultz. | ||||||
| Pitcher | IP |
H |
R/ER |
BB/K |
NP |
ERA |
| Kreft (L, 5-3) | 7.0 |
8 |
5/5 |
4/4 |
126 |
2.31 |
| Witt | 2.0 |
2 |
0/0 |
0/1 |
28 |
0.00 |
This page was created and maintained by Nick Kornder, Sports Information Director at Northern State University. The views and ideas on this page are that of the author, and not those of Northern State University.