Northstars split with Miners

After getting swept on the road at Vauxhall last Wednesday, the Havre Northstars American Legion baseball team couldn't afford to let the same thing happen at home Saturday against the Lethbridge Miners.

Yet, after losing the first game of the Northern A District doubleheader 3-2 and falling behind 2-0 in the first inning of the second game, a split looked like anything but a sure thing.

Thankfully for the Northstars, Tyrel Kjersem found his groove and picked up the victory, holding Lethbridge scoreless for the final six innings as Havre rallied for a 7-2, earning them a split of the two games hosted inside Legion Field.

The win turned out to be a crucial one for Havre, which is now 11-9 in the Northern A standings, sitting in third place. Vauxhall is in first at 16-2, followed by Lethbridge at 14-10. Right behind the Northstars is Lewistown, which will host a doubleheader between the two teams Tuesday night.

"The win was good to get but the way we played yesterday was the encouraging thing," Northstars head coach Patch Wirtzberger said.

In the first game Saturday, Austin Delarosa was on the mound for the Northstars and he put together a solid outing, giving up three runs on eight hits in six and two-thirds innings. Yet, Tate Pearce of Lethbridge was just a little better and he limited the Northstars to just two runs on five hits in a complete-game victory. The Northstars did threaten in the bottom of the seventh, an inning they entered down 3-1.

Hunter Lovenguth drew a walk to open the inning and eventually scored on a ground-ball sacrifice by Kennedy McKay, who earned an RBI for his work. That trimmed the lead to 3-2 and eventually Caden Jenkins got as far as third base before Pearce was able to record the final out.

Pearce got the win for the Miners after holding Havre to five hits, with one each by Ethan Roberts, Lovenguth, Jenkins, Kelden Sullivan and McKay. Eli Cloniger added an RBI.

In the second matchup between the Miners and Northstars, Lethbridge threatened to take control of the game early after going up 1-0 with the bases loaded in the top of the first. Yet, Kjersem and the Northstars limited the damage to just a pair of runs, keeping them within striking distance.

And in the bottom of the second inning, Havre started chipping away the Miners' lead. The Northstars scored one run in the second, third and fourth innings, taking a 3-2 lead. That was extended in the fourth by Delarosa, who hit a home run to left field. Havre added three more runs in the bottom sixth as Jenkins brought home a run on an RBI double, in addition to RBI singles by Quinn Reno and Tony Antley. In the bottom half of the inning, Kjersem and Carson Lunak, who came on the final out, closed out the game with a 1-2-3 inning. The defense also finished the game without an error.

"We are really starting to play some good baseball defensively," Wirtzberger said. "And in the second game, they really put it all together. Austin's Home Run really gave us a jolt and we just kind of ran away with it after that."

In six and two-thirds innings, Kjersem was outstanding, allowing just two hits and two runs. He did put eight runners on base with walks, however, he also managed nine strikeouts. Offensively, no player had more than one hit. Delarosa led the way with the home run, yet Reno, Antley, Cloninger and Jenkins all finished with a hit and an RBI as well. Ethan Carlson also added a hit and Ethan Roberts scored two runs.

The Northstars will get Monday off before heading to Lewistown for an important battle within the Northern A district. Havre split with the Redbirds the first time around, winning one game in extra innings and then nearly getting no-hit by Ben Kolar in a 7-0 defeat. Havre will have Antley and McKay, two of their veterans, on the mound in its final road games of the season. The team will be back at Legion Field Saturday to close out the regular season with a doubleheader against Vauxhall that starts at 3 p.m. The action Tuesday in Lewistown starts at 5 p.m.

"It will be Tony and Kennedy on the mound Tuesday," Wirtzberger said. "We have the opportunity to go into Lewistown and get one or two big wins which would be a big boost heading into districts. But we have to stay sharp mentally. I'm excited about the direction these kids are heading. We are really starting to play some good baseball at the right time."

Lethbridge 3, Havre 2

Lethbridge 100 101 0 - 3 8 2

Havre 000 001 1 - 2 5 2

WP - Tate Pearce

LP - Austin Delarosa

Havre batting - Ethan Roberts 1-3, Quinn Reno 0-3, Tony Antley 0-2, Eli Cloninger 0-2, Tyrel Kjersem 0-3, Hunter Lovenguth 1-2, Trenton Maloughney 0-2, Caden Jenkins 1-1, Kelden Sullivan 1-2, Kennedy McKay 1-3.

Havre 7, Lethbridge 2

Lethbridge 200 000 0 - 2 5 2

Havre 011 113 x - 7 6 0

WP - Tyrel Kjersem

LP - Ethan Smith

Havre batting - Ethan Roberts 0-2, Quinn Reno 1-3, Austin Delarosa 1-4, Tony Antley 1-4, Kennedy McKay 0-3, Kelden Sullivan 0-3, Ethan Carlson 1-2, Hunter Lovenguth 0-1, Eli Cloninger 1-1, Caden Jenkins 1-3.