Havre Northstars look to continue winning ways on senior day

It is now the last week of the regular season for the Havre Northstars American Legion baseball club. So that means just four more games before the postseason. The Northstars will get the week started with a doubleheader on the road against the Tri County Cardinals in Conrad. The Northstars will then return to Legion Field for a doubleheader against the Medicine Hat Knights Saturday.

With the regular season coming to a close, the Northstars will hold their senior day this Saturday. That means they will honor their seniors Eli Cloninger, Theron Peterson, Trenton Maloughney, Drake Berreth and Kale Reno. As they get ready to move on from the club, Havre head coach Patch Wirtzberger wants them to know what they meant to the Northstars over the years.

"It's been a great group of kids and it's been a lot of fun to watch them grow. They've obviously done great things for this program taking it to new heights," Wirtzberger said. "They make it fun for me to go to practice or go to every game every day. I can't say enough about their character. They've just been a great group of kids to be around."

But before the Northstars get to their senior day, they will play the Tri County Cardinals Thursday. The Northstars will be looking to keep up their strong play against the Cardinals as they are 3-0 in their meetings this summer. Havre took the first meeting, 9-3, before winning the next two matchups by scores of 10-0.

Then on their senior day, the Northstars will host the Medicine Hat Knights who are visiting from north of the border. While the Knights reside near the bottom of the standings, Wirtzberger knows that the Knights' bats as well as the emotions of senior day will force the Northstars to be at the top of their game this weekend.

"I expect them to hit the ball. We're going to have to make plays, and pitchers are going to have to be on their game," Wirtzberger said. "Senior day's always kind of an emotional day. You never know how your kids are going to come out and react so we just got to be ready to go."

The Northstars have been playing some of the best ball lately as they have a record of 30-18-1 this summer. Along the way, several Northstars have had strong seasons to lead the team to success.

On the mound, Brody Nanini has been a reliable starter with a 6-4 record. This season, he has a 2.650 ERA and 52 strikeouts while only walking 17 batters. He has also been strong at the plate with a .395 batting average, .500 on-base percentage, 53 RBIs and even two home runs.

Several other Northstars have made an impact at the plate this season. Cloninger leads the team with a .403 batting average and a .518 on-base percentage and has recorded 28 RBIs this season. Peterson has also been hot at the plate with a .391 batting average, a .503 on-base percentage and 42 RBIs.

Over their past 10 games, the Northstars have gone 8-1-1. As they are finding their stride right in time for the postseason, Wirtzberger hopes to use these last few games this weekend to continue their positive trajectory.

"It's our last opportunity to improve before the games start to matter a whole lot more so we're just looking to go out there and make improvements in our game," Wirtzberger said. "We've been playing really well and I feel like we've been building every week so hopefully we can keep on doing that."

The Northstars will play the Tri County Cardinals in Conrad Thursday starting at 3 p.m. They will then host the Medicine Hat Knights at Legion Field for their senior day starting at 1 p.m. Saturday.