Northstars ready for first road trip of the summer

After a couple weekends at home to start the season, the Havre Northstars American Legion baseball club is finally set to head on the road for the first time this season. On Saturday, the Northstars will head to Great Falls to play the Great Falls Chargers and the Bozeman Bucks in a pair of games. Then Sunday, they will continue their road trip with a doubleheader against the Kalispell Lakers.

With spring sports in full swing, the Northstars will be missing some players so Havre head coach Patch Wirtzberger expects everybody to get plenty of playing time this weekend. Even though they will not be at full strength, Wirtzberger knows he has experienced players who can handle their first road trip of the season.

"This is a pretty experienced team. We spent a majority of our summer on the road last year so going on the road is nothing different," Wirtzberger said. "It presents new challenges but I don't think it's anything that these guys aren't ready to handle."

The Northstars start the weekend Saturday afternoon with a game against the Great Falls Chargers. They will be a familiar opponent for the Northstars after they faced off multiple times last season. Last summer, the Northstars went 7-2 against the Chargers. However, Great Falls played better down the stretch with a 2-1 mark against Havre in their last three contests. While many players from the Great Falls A team moved up, Wirtzberger expects a fight to start the weekend.

"As we found out last year, those young kids from Great Falls can really play some good basketball so we have to be ready to go or else they can sneak up on us," Wirtzberger said.

The Northstars will then wrap up Saturday with a game against the Bozeman Bucks. The Bucks are not a familiar opponent for Havre, but Wirtzberger knows how good they are and knows the Northstars will need to bring their 'A' game against them.

"Bozeman is always a really talented baseball team. We have to be ready to go on the first pitch because they can jump right on you and they're going to keep the pressure on you all game," Wirtzberger said. "I think that might be our toughest game of the weekend so hopefully we can rise to the occasion."

The Northstars then head west for a doubleheader against the Kalispell Lakers on Sunday. The Lakers are another team the Northstars are unfamiliar with, but Wirtzberger knows what they are capable of.

"Those teams tend to be very fundamentally sound, pitchers are going to throw strikes and if you leave it over the plate, they're going to hit it," Wirtzberger said. "It's another one of those situations where we just have to come to the field and be prepared to play our best."

If the Northstars want to have a successful weekend, their players will need to continue playing well. Brody Nanini has been solid at the plate with a .444 batting average, .565 on-base percentage and five RBIs so far this season. Kale Reno has also been a reliable bat with a .417 batting average and three RBIs to start the season.

Both Nanini and Reno have been the main pitchers for Havre so far this season. In his two games this season, Nanini has recorded a 3.281 ERA, 14 strikeouts and four walks. Reno has pitched two games this season for a 1-1 record, 4.900 ERA, 11 strikeouts and seven walks. Lane Kinsella has also been reliable on the mound both starting and in relief. So far this spring, he has a .913 ERA, 12 strikeouts and two walks.

As they head away from the friendly confines of Legion Field, the Northstars will be looking to show they do not need their home crowd to be successful. But if they want to do that this weekend and in the future, Wirtzberger believes they will have to continue to be resilient.

"I just think it'll be how we respond to adversity," Wirtzberger said. "In four games in a weekend, there's going to be some things that don't go your way. A ball that bounces the way that you didn't think it would or maybe a pitch that gets called a strike that maybe you didn't think was a strike. It's how these guys respond to those moments and react to the very next pitch that is going to lead them to success or go the other way."

The Northstars will begin the weekend in Great Falls with a game against the Great Falls Chargers at 1 p.m. Saturday. Shortly after that game wraps up, the Northstars will play the Bozeman Bucks. The Northstars then head west Sunday for a doubleheader against the Kalispell Lakers starting at 11 a.m.