CROOKSTON AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL DROPS TWO GAMES TO FOSSTON

The Crookston American Legion Post 20 Baseball team hosted Fosston on Wednesday night from Jim Karn Field. The two teams met on June 24 and the game was postponed after two innings of play due to weather, so the two teams resumed that game tonight before the start of the second game with Fosston ahead 6-4 in the top of the third inning. Fosston would capitalize on some Crookston mistakes and win game one 14-4 in five innings, before winning game two in an exciting 3-1 finish.

FINISHING OF GAME ONE –
Crookston had Blake Melsa on second base with two outs in the top of the third inning to resume play and couldn’t get him home, keeping Fosston in front 6-4 after two and a half innings of play. 

Fosston then wasted no time adding to their lead in the bottom of the third inning. They would plate two runs with two walks, a hit batter, a Crookston error, and a sacrifice fly, giving them an 8-4 lead after three innings of play.

After a 1-2-3 top of the fourth inning for Crookston, Fosston would break the game open in the home half of the inning. They would get back-to-back singles to start the inning, and after a hit batter loaded the bases, two wild pitches would score two runs to make it 10-4. After a strikeout and another walk, Crookston would make a pitching change by bringing in Teagen Lubinski to pitch for Alex Longoria. Fosston would score one more run on a wild pitch, but Lubinski would then get the last two outs of the inning, giving Fosston an 11-4 lead entering the fifth inning. 

Fosston would need three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to win via the 10-run rule, and they would do just that on four hits, and two Crookston errors. Crookston never recorded an out in the inning and Fosston would walk away with a 14-4 win.

Game 1	1	2	3	4	5	R	H	E
Crookston	0	4	0	0	0	4	2	4
Fosston	4	2	2	3	3	14	10	1

 

GAME TWO –
Jacob Miller would get the start for Crookston in the second game and pitch a scoreless top of the first inning. In the bottom of the frame, Miller would get a 1-out single, reach second base on a wild pitch, and steal third base. With two outs, Miller would try and delay steal home and would be thrown out at the plate for the final out of the inning. That would keep the game scoreless at 0-0 after one inning of play.

Fosston would threaten in the top of the second inning after a Crookston error put the leadoff hitter aboard. After a stolen base, and a groundout to second put the runner on third, he would try and advance home on a passed ball and be tagged out by catcher Jackson Demarais on a bang-bang play. Miller would then get the final out of the inning and keep the game 0-0.

Crookston would work three straight walks from Alex Longoria, Cade Coauette, and Blake Melsa to start the bottom of the second inning to load the bases with nobody out. Teagen Lubinski would fly out to right field on the next at-bat, and Longoria would be thrown out at home trying to tag up and score for the second out of the inning, Fosston starting pitcher Evan Chalich would strike out the next hitter to get out of the jam and keep Crookston off the scoreboard, keeping the game tied at 0-0 through two innings of play. 

After Fosston would go 1-2-3 in the top of the third, Crookston would draw first blood. Jacob Miller would get a two-out single for his second hit of the game, advance to second on a Fosston throwing error, reach third base on a wild pitch, and come in to score on an Ashton Larson single. That would put Crookston in front 1-0 after three innings of play.

Fosston would put runners on second and third base with hits from Noah Mahlen and Keegan Senger in the top of the fourth inning. with two outs, Miller would dig down and get a pivotal strikeout for the final out of the inning, keeping Crookston in front 1-0.

Crookston would go down quietly in the bottom of the fourth inning, and Fosston would take the lead 3-1 in the top of the fifth on two questionable calls. After a leadoff walk and a single to start the inning, Fosston’s next hitter would square to bunt and get hit by a pitch to load the bases. Crookston Manager Rob Silvers would argue the call and get ejected from the game. Cullen Norland would then hit a sacrifice fly out to centerfield to tie the game at 1-1, but Crookston would turn it into a double play on a great throw from Gunnar Gunderson in centerfield to third base to tag the runner out who was trying to tag up from second base. Aaron Norland would then rope a line shot to left-center field that would turn into an inside-the-park home run after the ball got tangled up in the ivy. Gunderson put his hands up in the outfield signaling that the ball was stuck, however, he started digging for the ball and removed it from the ivy after he put his hands up, so the umpires ruled that it would stand as an inside the park home run after Norland ran all the way home. That gave Fosston the 3-1 lead.

Crookston would threaten in the bottom of the fifth inning with a two-out walk from Gunnar Gunderson, and Jacob Miller’s third hit of the game to put runners on first and third base. Fosston would induce a pop-out, however, and get out of the inning still in front 3-1.

Both teams would go scoreless in the sixth inning, and after Fosston would strand the bases loaded in the top of the seventh inning, Crookston would need at least two runs in the bottom of the inning to keep their chances of winning alive. 

Crookston would get a leadoff walk from Jackson Demarais, and after a strikeout, Spencer Ness would pinch hit and draw a walk as well. Jacob Miller would then bloop a hit into shallow leftfield and load the bases with one hit, putting the tying run in scoring position, and the winning run on base. Crookston would catch an unfortunate break to end the game, as Ashton Larson would crush a ball right back to the pitcher, who would secure the catch, and double off Demarais at third base to end the game.

FOR CROOKSTON MANAGER ROB SILVERS COMMENTS, CLICK BELOW

 

Game 2	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
Fosston	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	3	5	2
Crookston	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	6	2

 

Pitching	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Jacob Miller – Crox (LP)	6.0	4	3	3	2	4
Cade Coauette – Crox	1.0	1	0	0	1	0
Evan Chalich – Fos (WP)	6.0	5	1	0	4	7
Carsen Boushee – Fos (S)	1.0	1	0	0	2	1