sports

CROOKSTON PIRATE SOFTBALL STRUGGLES OFFENSIVELY IN TWO LOSSES TO EAST POLK

May 10, 2022

The Crookston Pirate Girls Softball team played a doubleheader this afternoon against the East Polk North Stars. The games were supposed to be played in Crookston, but due to field conditions, they were moved to Erskine. Crookston struggled offensively failing to score in either game, losing twice by final scores of 11-0 and 10-0. “They looked a little uncertain and a little off today at the plate,” said Pirates Head Coach Sunny Bowman. “We just never got going offensively and a lot of that has to do with our mind and how we approach the plate.”

GAME ONE –
East Polk took advantage of two Crookston errors in the top of the first inning to go up 2-0. The North Stars put runners on first and second base with 1-out, and after a wild pitch put runners on second and third base, a ground out would bring the first run home, then a 2-out single would give the North Stars their 2-0 lead.

Crookston would get walks from Addie Fee and Jenna Coauette in the bottom of the first inning, and after a wild pitch with two outs, they would move to second and third base, but the Pirates threat would end with a strikeout keeping them off the scoreboard.

The Northstars would hit back-back singles to begin the top of the second inning, putting runners on the corners. Emily Bowman would make a leaping catch at shortstop for the first out of the inning, and after a line drive hit Jenna Coauette in the foot, she was able to gather herself and throw the runner out at first base for the second out, while keeping the runner at third base. However, with two outs, a North Stars double from their pitcher Brynlea Mahlen would plate both runs, and after another Pirates error, followed by a double from Calli Barrack, another run would score, and East Polk would take a 5-0 lead into the bottom of the second inning.

The Pirates would go 1-2-3 in the bottom of the second inning with North Stars pitcher Brynlea Mahlen striking out two more hitters bringing her total up to four. The North Stars would score two more runs in the top of the third inning. The first hitter would reach base, and then Vanessa Johnson would rope a triple to left-center field. The throw would get away coming back into the infield, allowing Johnson to run all the way home for the 7-0 lead. Coauette would settle in and get out of the inning with limited damage.

Crookston would go quietly again in the bottom of the third inning but would get their first zero on the scoreboard defensively in the top of the fourth, keeping the game at 7-0 in favor of the North Stars. Crookston would get a two-out walk in the bottom of the fourth from Dani Kresl, but a strikeout would end the inning keeping East Polk in front 7-0 with three innings remaining.

Crookston showed some of their best defense all season in the top of the fifth inning with a diving catch by Carley Knutson out in center field, and a diving play by Jenna Coauette in the infield. “That was really great to see from those two,” said Pirates Head Coach Sunny Bowman. “We did struggle at times today in the field, but we also made some really nice plays so that is for sure a positive.” The two plays would help Crookston put up another zero on the scoreboard, but the Pirates would once again go down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the fifth inning.

East Polk would add five more hits in the top of the sixth inning, and with one more Pirates error mixed in, score four more runs, including a two-run Home Run to extend the lead to 11-0. That would force the Pirates to get at least two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to keep the game going due to the run rule. Crookston would fail to score, but would get their first hit of the game with two outs to avoid being no-hit. Jenna Coauette would hit a bloop single to right field with two outs giving the Pirates their only hit, and after the next hitter was retired, East Polk would take Game 1 by a final score of 11-0.

For Crookston –
Jenna Coauette 1 for 2, BB
Addie Fee, Dani Kresl, both walked once

Game 1	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H	E
East Polk	2	3	2	0	0	4	11	13	1
Crookston	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	6

Pitching	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Jenna Coauette- Crookston (L)	6	13	11	8	1	4
Brynlea Mahlen- East Polk (W)	5	0	0	0	3	8
Kianna Tadman- East Polk	1	1	0	0	0	1

GAME TWO –
Crookston played as the road team in Game 2, and got a leadoff single from Addie Fee to start the game. The Pirates next three hitters would be retired for a scoreless top of the first. Dani Kresl got the start in the circle for Crookston in Game 2, and delivered a perfect 1-2-3 inning for the Pirates keeping the game tied at 0-0 after one inning of play.

Crookston would once again get the leadoff hitter on base as Reese Swanson would single to left field. The Pirates next two hitters would both get out, but Swanson would steal second base in the process putting her in scoring position with two outs. Kendall Bergquist would then hit a groundball to the left side of the infield that the North Stars would fumble, putting runners on first and third base. Olivia Rosendahl was in the circle for East Polk, and would get the next Pirates hitter to strike out, ending Crookston’s scoring chance.

East Polk would strike first in the bottom of the second inning, and blow the game open. The leadoff hitter would walk, and after stealing second and third base, the North Stars would hit a sacrifice fly for the first run of the game and a 1-0 lead. The next two East Polk hitters would single, and after a wild pitch, runners would be at second and third base with 1 out. Another wild pitch would score the runner from third base, and after a walk, runners were on first and third base with still just 1 out. After the runner on first base stole second, Kresl would get a huge strikeout for the second out of the inning. However, another wild pitch would bring in another run making it 3-0 North Stars, and East Polk was far from done in the inning. They would proceed to get four straight hits plating three more runs to take a 6-0 lead after two innings of play. “It was the same story in Game 1,” said Pirates Head Coach Sunny Bowman. “They could score and we really couldn’t today.”

The Pirates offensive struggles continued with a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the third. Fee was the only Pirate to hit the ball hard in the inning, roping a line drive off the pitchers glove to second base for the first out. The North Stars would add to their lead in the bottom of the third. The first four hitters would reach base for the North Stars leaving the bases loaded and nobody out with a 7-0 lead. Kresl would work out of the jam getting the next three hitters out while only surrendering one more run, giving East Polk an 8-0 lead after three innings.

The Pirates would get a two-out single from Aleah Bienek in the top of the fourth inning, but nothing more. East Polk would add two more in the bottom of the fourth inning, forcing Crookston to score in the top of the fifth to keep the game going due to the run rule. The Pirates could not score, and the game was over with the North Stars winning 10-0.

Crookston falls to 1-7 on the season and will play Red Lake County Central on Thursday afternoon in Oklee. The first pitch is set for 4:00 p.m. “We will work on a lot of mindset things tomorrow in practice to prepare for that game,” said Pirates Head Coach Sunny Bowman. “We just need a better approach moving forward and it’s something we have to improve on.”

East Polk improves to 6-2 on the season with the two wins.

For Crookston –
Addie Fee, 1 for 3
Aleah Bienek, 1 for 2
Reese Swanson, 1 for 2
Kendall Bergquist, 1 for 2