Northstars win North District Championship

The Havre Northstars American Legion baseball club had an excellent regular season and that has carried on into the beginning of the postseason. Over the weekend in Vauxhall, the Northstars went undefeated in the Class A North District tournament to win the district championship and advance to the state tournament.

The Northstars secured the championship on Sunday afternoon with an 8-2 win over the Lethbridge Miners. Lethbridge struck first with an RBI double in the top of the first inning to take the lead. The Miners then scored another run in the top of the third to extend the lead to 2-0. Havre responded in the bottom of the third when Colter Solomon scored on a groundout to cut the deficit to 2-1.

The Northstars continued to climb their way back in the bottom of the fourth. With a runner on second base, Chason Mader hit a single to left field to drive in the run to tie the game 2-2. Solomon then hit a double to right to drive in Mader for the run and the 3-2 lead.

Solomon then scored on an error to increase the lead to 4-2. Ezra Pyle kept things rolling for the Northstars with an RBI single to left. Brody Nanini scored on another Lethbridge error to extend Havre's lead to 6-2.

The Northstars continued to roll in the bottom of the sixth. Nanini scored on an error to increase Havre's lead and then Conner McKay drove in another run with a single to left to push the lead to 8-2.

The Miners were unable to respond as Havre went on to win the game and the Class A North District championship. Terek Shipp earned the win on the mound as he allowed five hits and one earned run in a complete game for Havre. At the plate, Solomon went 3-3 with an RBI.

The Northstars' journey to the championship game started on Thursday with a 4-1 victory over the Fort Macleod Royals. The Northstars then kept it rolling on Friday night with a 3-0 win over the Lewistown Redbirds to further advance in the tournament.

Both the Northstars and the Redbirds struggled to score throughout Friday night. In the bottom of the second, the Northstars scored the only runs of the game. With two runners on base early in the inning, a sacrifice bunt from Kale Reno allowed McKay to score to give Havre the lead.

At the next at bat, a Lewistown error allowed Jevin Jenkins to score for Havre. Solomon then hit a single to center field to drive in another run to give Havre a 3-0 lead. Neither team was able to score the rest of the way, which meant that the Northstars advanced to the next round of the tournament. Tanner Delarosa pitched a great game for Havre as he allowed eight hits and no runs in a complete game, and most importantly, the win.

Later on Saturday afternoon, the Northstars remained hot with a 12-3 win over the Lethbridge Miners. Early in the bottom of the first, the Northstars took the lead. With two runners on, Jenkins hit a double to left to clear the bases and give Havre the lead. Then in the bottom of the second, an RBI single from Pyle pushed the lead to 3-0.

After a slow start on offense, the Miners finally got on a roll in the top of the fourth. With the bases loaded, a sacrifice fly allowed a Miner to score. A double then cleared the bases to tie the game 3-3.

The Northstars eventually responded in the bottom of the fifth to retake the lead. With the bases loaded with two outs, a double from Solomon drove in a pair of runs for the 5-3 lead. Tyson Brandon followed that up with a double of his own to left to drive in another pair of runs to push the lead to 7-3.

The Northstars kept it rolling in the bottom of the sixth. With the bases loaded, Shipp scored on a sacrifice fly from Mader. An error then allowed Jenkins and Drake Berreth to both score for Havre. Nanini then hit a double to center to drive in another pair of runs to give Havre a 12-3 lead.

The Northstars recorded three quick outs in the top of the seventh to close it out and advance to the tournament championship game. Reno pitched a complete game for Havre as he allowed six hits and three runs. At the plate, Solomon went 3-3 with two RBIs.

At the end of the tournament, the Northstars now have a record of 43-16-1. The Northstars will next play in the state tournament, which starts this Thursday in Laurel.

Havre 3, Lewistown 0

LEW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 8 1

HAV 0 3 0 0 0 0 X - 3 6 1

WP - Tanner Delarosa

LP - T. Sparks

Havre Batting - Brody Nanini 1-3, Ezra Pyle 1-3, Terek Shipp 0-3, Conner McKay 1-3, Jevin Jenkins 1-2, Drake Berreth 0-2, Kale Reno 0-2, Chason Mader 0-3, Colter Solomon 2-2.

Havre 12, Lethbridge 3

LET 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 - 3 6 2

HAV 2 1 0 0 4 5 X - 12 9 0

WP - Kale Reno

LP - K. Pallett

Havre Batting - Brody Nanini 1-3, Ezra Pyle 1-5, Terek Shipp 0-1, Conner McKay 0-3, Jevin Jenkins 2-2, Drake Berreth 1-2, Chason Mader 0-2, Colter Solomon 3-3, Tyson Brandon 1-3.

Havre 8, Lethbridge 2, Championship

LET 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 - 2 5 1

HAV 0 0 1 5 0 2 X - 8 10 1

WP - Terek Shipp

LP - B. Risling

Havre Batting - Brody Nanini 1-3, Ezra Pyle 2-4, Conner McKay 1-3, Jevin Jenkins 1-3, Drake Berreth 1-4, Kale Reno 0-3, Chason Mader 1-3, Colter Solomon 3-3, Tyson Brandon 0-3.