June 7, 2006
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Shane Hofmann, Joe Ploetz, Dave Feldt at Tiger Open
Belle Plaine, Minn. - It has been a busy last week for the Tigers, and things will only get busier this weekend as they host the 8 th annual Tigertown Classic. This year’s field is arguably the greatest of all-time, and will feature Freeport (formerly Melrose), Union Hill, Elko, Le Sueur, Blue Earth, Green Isle, Marshall, and host Belle Plaine. The tournament kicks off at 6:30 pm Friday – which is $5 All-You-Can-Eat Pork Burger Night – with a battle between Freeport and Union Hill, followed up by the hometown Tigers clashing with Elko and their spirited fan base, at approximately 8:30 pm.
Action resumes early on Saturday, with a 10:30 am start between Le Sueur and Blue Earth being the first of five games on the day. Green Isle and Marshall will square off at 12:45 pm, and after that the match-ups will depend on how the games are unfolding. Three games will take place Sunday, culminating with the championship game at 3:30 pm. For the full tournament bracket, please see the accompanying bracket to this article. Also, check www.bptigertown.com for bracket pairings, tournament updates, and all the latest.
On Tuesday, June 13, the Tigers will return to league action with a 7:30 pm home contest against the Brownton Bruins.
Since last week’s Herald, Tigertown’s Finest has gone 1-3, including a pair of one-run losses. In fact, four of Belle Plaine’s last five losses are by one run. Don’t cry for me, Argentina – I’m just saying. Overall, the Tigers have lost five of their last seven, and currently sit at 5-6 overall, 3-4 in the Carver Central.
Friday was the 3 rd annual Tiger Open golf fund-raiser at Valley View, and a grand time was had by all. Participation was higher than it’s ever been – for both golfers and sponsors – and the Tigers (both Gray and town team) would truly like to extend their thanks and appreciation. Also, congrats to our winners, who carded an impressive 14-under: Dave Hartmann, Mike Hartmann, Rick Stevens, and Doug Olsen. Nick Kornder snapped some photos of the golf tournament – check them out online.
We’d like to take a moment to recognize this year’s 42 sponsors: Borough Bowl, Countryside Construction, Kinetico-Haferman Water Conditioning, CMD Landscaping, Car-X, Schuster Landscaping, Ken Worm Construction, Edina Realty (Belle Plaine office), Edina Realty (Billy Pauling), Northwestern Health Sciences University, Vector Engineering, Studio West Designs, Community Mortgage Lenders, Inc., State Farm Insurance, Progressive Printing, Valley View Golf Club, Rainbow Discovery Center, Innovative Graphics, Lupient Motors, Tidy Disposal, Inc., Lichliter Brothers Plumbing, Siemon Implement, State Bank of Belle Plaine, Friendly Chevrolet, Behnke Auto Center, Andy’s Bar & Grill, Hartman Cabinets, DEB’s Embroidery, Brad’s Barber Shop, A-1 Stripes, Inc., Daly & Daly, Sparetime Tavern, Ruck’s Meats, Neisen’s Red Door, SBG, Inc., Donovan Family (in memory of Marty Donovan, former Tiger), Chard Tiling, Diversified Financial Resources, Westerman Lumber, Skluzacek Oil, Emma Krumbee’s, and Annie’s Cafe & Catering. Thanks again!
| 5/30/06 | 1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
| Waconia | 1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
7 |
3 |
| Belle Plaine | 0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
8 |
7 |
The Tigers reverted to early-season form as they committed seven errors, and pretty much got their hind-ends handed to them by CCL-Red foe Waconia. Le Tigre actually out-hit the Lakers, 8 to 7, but the seven errors led to four unearned runs as the Lakers scored in every inning except the 2nd, 8th, and 9th.
Skipper Dave Kreft took the loss as he went 5.1 innings, giving up six runs (two earned) before yielding to reliever Jonny Schulz. Schulz went 2.2 innings and extended his scoreless string to 8.2 this year. Ryan Witt finished up with a scoreless ninth.
Shane Hofmann stayed hot at the plate as he went 2-for-3 with a RBI, while Witt laced a pair of singles in two at-bats, and garnered the other Tiger RBI.
In honor of Little League Night at Tiger Park, Eric Lyons and Tim Schuster both saw action.
| Belle Plaine TIGERS (4-4, 2-3) | ||||||
AB |
R |
H |
RBI |
BB |
Avg. |
|
| Schuneman, cf | 4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.158 |
| N. Selly, ph | 1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.400 |
| Kreft, p | 3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.143 |
| R. Witt, 1b-p | 2 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
.158 |
| P. Schultz, c | 3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
.267 |
| P. Dressen, ss | 1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.500 |
| Hartmann, 3b | 3 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.407 |
| Lyons, 3b | 1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.167 |
| S. Hofmann, rf | 3 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
.667 |
| Connolly, rf | 1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.167 |
| J. Schulz, 2b-p | 3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.318 |
| Mi. Schultz, 1b | 1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
| Feldt, lf | 2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
.227 |
| Schuster, lf | 1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.154 |
| Ma. Schultz, dh-c | 4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.143 |
| Lawson, ss | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.333 |
| Jass, 1b | 2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.211 |
| R. Dressen, ph-2b | 1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.167 |
| TOTALS | 36 |
2 |
8 |
2 |
2 |
.222 |
| 2B – none. 3B – none. HR – none. HBP – R. Dressen. SB – none. | ||||||
| Pitcher | IP |
H |
R/ER |
BB/K |
NP |
ERA |
| Kreft (L, 0-3) | 5.1 |
4 |
4/2 |
5/3 |
105 |
4.32 |
| J. Schulz | 2.2 |
2 |
2/0 |
2/1 |
48 |
0.00 |
| R. Witt | 1 |
1 |
0/0 |
0/2 |
16 |
5.07 |
| 6/1/06 | 1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
| Winthrop | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
3 |
| Belle Plaine | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
X |
1 |
2 |
1 |
In a nutshell, the Tigers have fared very well against the Eagles in regular season play in recent history, and not-so-hot in the playoffs. While it doesn’t necessarily mean anything, it always makes for an interesting backdrop when these two clubs get together.
Mike Schultz led the Tigers to their fifth win of the season, in a stellar pitching performance. The right-hander went the distance, giving up only five hits and setting down eight Eagles via strikeout. Brother and battery mate Pat Schultz was at-bat in the eighth inning when Belle Plaine broke the scoreless tie. Schultz hit into a fielder’s choice with the bases loaded, as the throw home sailed wide and allowed Ryan Dressen to score.
Ben Melius was the hard-luck loser, as he allowed only two hits on the night. He even carried a no-hitter until Dave Kreft muscled a single with one out in the sixth. The only other hit was from Nate Hartmann in the seventh.
The Tigers totaled just one error on the night, by far their best defensive performance of the year. Tiger webmaster Nick Kornder snapped 83 game photos of this 1-0 battle – click here.
Belle Plaine TIGERS (5-4, 3-3) |
||||||
AB |
R |
H |
RBI |
BB |
Avg. |
|
| Schuneman, lf | 3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
.136 |
| Kreft, 1b | 3 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
.167 |
| P. Schultz, c | 4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.235 |
| Hartmann, 3b | 3 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.400 |
| Kruschke, pr | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
| S. Hofmann, rf | 2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.571 |
| J. Schulz, dh | 3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.318 |
| Mi. Schultz, p | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
| Lawson, ss | 2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
.200 |
| R. Dressen, 2b | 1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.143 |
| N. Selly, ph | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
.400 |
| Volek, cf | 2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.185 |
| TOTALS | 23 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
4 |
.087 |
| 2B – none. 3B – none. HR – none. HBP – Hartmann. SB – none. | ||||||
| SAC – S. Hofmann, R. Dressen, Volek. | ||||||
| Pitcher | IP |
H |
R/ER |
BB/K |
NP |
ERA |
| Mi. Schultz (W, 1-1) | 9 |
5 |
0/0 |
2/8 |
128 |
2.14 |
| 6/3/06 | 1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
| Belle Plaine | 1 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
9 |
14 |
3 |
| Henderson | 1 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
X |
10 |
14 |
6 |
Baseball is back in Henderson for the first time in a long time, and our lads were excited to be a part of its return, especially to get a look-see at the new ballpark. The site seems to have a lot of potential, with a beautiful tree-line stemming out from right field, and hillside viewing looming as an option, reminiscent (albeit, on a smaller scale) of Jordan.
Jonny Schulz climbed Mount Henderson to toe the rubber for the Chatfield Nine. Schulz led 4-1 until a nightmarish 4th inning, in which 12 men came to the plate, with seven scoring. Belle Plaine committed all three of its errors in this dark frame, not a good mix when combined with Henderson’s six hits. By the time Dave Feldt worked out of the inning, it was 8-4 in favor of the Fighting Berberichs.
The Plainesmen fought back hard, grabbing two in the fifth and three in the eighth to cut it to 10-9, with men at 2nd and 3rd with two outs. However, a strikeout ended the threat.
In the ninth, Belle Plaine got the tying run to second with one out, but again the runner died on the vine as Henderson took “The Battle of the Tigers”. Both teams slugged 14 hits on the afternoon, with Pat Schultz leading the way for the Red Caps with a 3-for-4 effort.
| Belle Plaine (5-5, 3-3) | ||||||
AB |
R |
H |
RBI |
BB |
Avg. |
|
| Volek, cf | 4 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
.194 |
| Kruschke, cf | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
| Kreft, 1b | 3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.148 |
| Ma. Schultz, 1b | 2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.111 |
| P. Schultz, rf | 4 |
0 |
3 |
2 |
0 |
.290 |
| Connolly, rf | 2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.125 |
| Hartmann, c | 4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
.382 |
| J. Schulz, p | 1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
.348 |
| Schuneman, lf | 4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.154 |
| Feldt, lf-p | 4 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
.231 |
| R. Dressen, 2b | 1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.125 |
| Schuster, dh | 4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.176 |
| Lawson, ss-p | 1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
.333 |
| P. Dressen, 3b | 3 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.400 |
| Jass, 3b | 1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
.250 |
| A. Hoffman, 2b-ss | 4 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
.250 |
| N. Selly, ph | 1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
.500 |
| TOTALS | 43 |
9 |
14 |
7 |
4 |
.326 |
| 2B – J. Schulz, Lawson, Jass. 3B – none. HR – none. | ||||||
| HBP – Kreft, Hartmann, P. Dressen. SB – P. Schultz, R. Dressen, | ||||||
| P. Dressen, A. Hoffman. SAC – none. | ||||||
| Pitcher | IP |
H |
R/ER |
BB/K |
NP |
ERA |
| J. Schulz (L, 0-1) | 3.2 |
10 |
8/3 |
1/2 |
80 |
2.19 |
| Feldt | 3.1 |
4 |
2/2 |
2/1 |
47 |
3.38 |
| Lawson | 1 |
0 |
0/0 |
0/1 |
10 |
0.00 |
| 6/4/06 | 1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
| Belle Plaine | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
5 |
1 |
| Victoria | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
10 |
- |
The Tigers took a 2-1 lead into the 9th, only to watch Victoria string together three hits – including a two-run, game-winning double from Clark Poppitz – to win 3-2. Shane Hofmann went the distance for Belle Plaine, scattering ten hits and taking the tough loss. There was one out when Poppitz delivered his game-clinching blow.
Pat Schultz was literally the Tiger offense, collecting three of the team’s five hits, including an RBI-triple in the sixth. Nick Volek drove in the other Tiger run on an infield grounder in the 7th, giving the Tigers a 2-1 lead that would hold until the perilous ninth.
The Tigers played near-flawless defense, committing only one gaffe on the night. Shortstop Brad Lawson was particularly stellar in the field, according to eye-witness reports.
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.