Back in business: North Stars split

The Havre North Stars were desperately in need of a breakout performance, and a victory. Havre had lost six straight Northern District games heading into their last homestand of the season.

And Wednesday afternoon, under the hot sun at Legion Field, the North Stars got that breakout win. In an American Legion Northern District doubleheader against the Vauxhall Spurs, Havre scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, then held off a Vauxhall rally to earn a 7-6 victory. The North Stars would have to settle for a split as Vauxhall came back to win the second game, 7-2.

But even with the split, and a tough loss in game two, Havre head coach Danny Wirtzberger was pleased, and excited for his team.

“Good to get a win,” Wirtzberger said. “Good to get past the last six games. I’m happy for the kids. They wanted to win today and they went out and got one against a really solid Spurs team. Vauxhall is a veteran, older team, so it’s really good to get a win against them.”

The win didn’t come easy. Tyrell Pierce, pitching for the second time this week, put up a solid performance on the mound, throwing 106 pitches, striking out two and walking only four. But Pierce and the North Stars still found themselves tied 3-3 with the Spurs heading into the bottom of the sixth inning. And that’s when things finally started to go Havre’s way.

Chris Vukasin reached first to lead off the inning, and was moved over by Chance Pitkanen. Catcher Jake Sedahl then drilled a base hit, and would eventually reach third on two straight balks by Vauxhall pitcher Reed Odeland, who came on in relief of Kaden Fujita. Jeff Miller then reached on an error, driving in Sedahl, while Gavin Gunderson soon followed with an RBI base hit of his own. Eventually, Miller, Gunderson and Travis Roth would come around to score as Havre plated four runs and led 7-3 heading into Vauxhall’s half of the last inning.

Things got tough from there as the Spurs started a serious rally, and pulled to 7-6. But Dylan Carpenter was steady in relief of Pierce, and wound up getting a couple of ground ball outs to finish off the Spurs, and end Havre’s losing streak in the process.

“It’s a nice win for us,” Wirtzberger said. “Tyrell pitched and played phenomenal, in spite of his hamstring injury. And Dylan did a good job of coming in to get the save. It was a tough ballgame and one that was important for us to win.”

The North Stars and Spurs battled back and forth in a game of few hits and fewer runs early on. Vauxhall went ahead 1-0 in the third, but Havre bounced right back as Ryne Antley walked early in the inning, stole second and eventually came around to score. The Spurs snuck back ahead in the fourth inning, but Havre again answered as Vukasin smacked a single to lead off the bottom of the fourth, and was eventually driven in on a sacrifice fly by Miller. Havre then took its first lead when Denny came through with an RBI in the bottom of the fifth, before the Spurs tied the game with one run in the top of the sixth.

Sedahl went 2-for-2, while Denny, Ross, Vukasin and Gunderson all had hits. Denny drove in two, while Miller and Antley added RBI. Antley also scored twice for the North Stars, who totaled just six hits, but took advantage of several Vauxhall errors.

While Havre was excited to snap its six-game losing streak Wednesday, the Spurs, and in particular, pitcher Nolan Gilbertson, wouldn’t allow the North Stars to start a winning streak.

In the second game of the doubleheader, Gilbertson was sharp, surrendering just five hits and two runs while striking out four. Vauxhall’s defense was also much better in the second outing, while Gunderson took a complete-game loss, with the Spurs exploding for five runs in the third inning.

Havre did take an early lead as Roth led off the bottom of the first with a single and was driven in by Vukasin. Havre went up 2-0 in the third inning when Sedahl doubled in Denny. From there however, the North Stars’ bats went silent, while the Spurs totaled eight hits and an efficient seven runs in the victory.

Sedahl finished 2-of-3 in what was a strong day at the plate. Roth, Vukasin and Carpenter also added hits for the North Stars, who are now 8-10 in conference play and 17-17 overall.

“We played well at times, in both games,” Wirtzberger said. “But I think we can definitely play better. I don’t think we are playing as good as we’re capable of. And we’ve got two more important games tomorrow. Fort MacLeod will come down here and play us much better than they did up there. They have a couple of kids back, they are solid and well-coached, and I know they’re playing much better than they were when we went up there. So we’ll have to come back and be ready to play two good games.”

Havre closes out its home schedule tonight when the North Stars host the Fort MacLeod Royals in a doubleheader at Legion Field. Havre swept the Royals two weeks ago in Fort MacLeod, Alberta. The first game of tonight’s home finale starts at 5.

North Stars 7, Vauxhall 6

Vauxhall 001 101 3 – 6 7 2

Havre 001 114 X – 7 6 3

WP – Tyrell Pierce, LP – Kaden Fujita, SP – Dylan Carpenter

Vauxhall – Matt Melynchuk 1-3, Jaydon Wandler 2-4, Jason Wong 0-3, Vance Fode 0-3, Jalen Lane 0-2, Adam Kress 2-4, Nolan Gilbertson 0-4, Matt Perin 1-2, Nick Bolt 0-2.

Havre – Travis Roth 0-1, Spencer Ross 1-3, David Denny 1-3 (2 RBI), Chris Vukasin 1-3, Chance Pitkanen 0-3, Jake Sedahl 2-2, Jeff Miller 0-2 (RBI), Gavin Gunderson 1-3, Ryne Antley 0-2 (RBI).

Vauxhall 7, North Stars 2

Vauxhall 005 020 0 – 7 8 0

Havre 101 000 0 – 2 5 3

WP – Nolan Gilbertson, LP – Gavin Gunderson

Vauxhall – Matt Melynchuk 0-4, Jaydon Wandler 2-3, Jason Wong 1-4, Vance Fode 2-4, Jalen Lane 1-3, Adam Kress 0-3, Ryan Marshall 0-2, Matt Perin 1-3, Nick Bolt 1-2.

Havre – Travis Roth 1-4, Spencer Ross 0-1, David Denny 0-2, Chris Vukasin 1-3 (RBI), Jake Sedahl 2-3 (RBI), Jeff Miller 0-3, Dylan Carpenter 1-3, Michael Loftus 0-2, Gavin Gunderson 0-1, Ryne Antley 0-2.