The strains of Kool & the Gang’s hit “Celebration” were blaring out of the Braham Snappers dugout on Sunday, June 30.
And why not? The Snappers had just claimed a 12-11 victory over visiting Hinckley, giving Braham its first Town Ball win of the season.
“It’s been a tough year for us so far,” assistant coach Andy Beckstrom said afterward. “A win like this can be huge for us. We’re trying to change the culture after a few tough years, and Hinckley’s a good team at the top of the league.
“So this is a big step for our culture. Now our guys know we’re not going to just get rolled over.”
Early in the game, the Snappers seemed to be in danger of being run-ruled. After Braham scored a run in the bottom of the first, the Knights came back to score six runs in the top of the second, with four of those runs riding home on a grand slam.
“That’s what Hinckley does: They’re going to score runs,” Beckstrom said. “But we knew it was early, so we had time to score runs and get back into the game.
“We didn’t hang our head or get down. We fought back.”
Braham scored twice in the bottom of the second, then countered a Hinckley run in the top of the third with two runs in the bottom of that frame.
The Knights scored once in the top of the fifth, but the Snappers took command with four runs in the bottom of the fifth. Nathan Pace drew a bases-loaded walk to tie the game at 8-8, and Casey Lucht drew a walk that gave his team the lead.
Hinckley tied the game in the sixth, but the Snappers used an inning-ending double play to avoid further damage, then took the lead in the bottom of that inning thanks in part to a based-loaded single by Jacob Johnson and a wild pitch that brought home another run.
Nursing an 11-9 lead into the eighth, Braham seemed poised to escape a bases-loaded, none-out jam when Johnson coaxed a 1-2-3 double play. But the Knights retied the game when the next batter doubled.
That set the stage for an exciting play in the bottom of the eighth that won the game for the Snappers. With runners on first and third and one out, Hunter Giffrow broke from third base on an infield grounder and just beat the tag at home to score what proved to be the winning run.
It proved to be a happy finish to a tough week for Braham, which lost two games a day earlier. The Snappers dropped a 9-5 decision to Ramsey in an afternoon contest that saw Colton Schusted line a two-run double and Pace also add a two-base hit.
In the evening game Mora scored a run in the bottom of the 10th inning to claim a 4-3 win. Pace and Schusted each had three of the team’s eight hits, while Noah Pace added a pair of hits.
The North Branch Nighthawks claimed a wild 11-9 victory over the Isanti Redbirds in a contest played at Isanti on Thursday, June 27. Isanti scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game, only to see the Nighthawks bounce back with two runs in the top of the ninth to claim the win.
For North Branch, which finished with 13 hits, Andrew Orf and Nick Pilz led the offense with three hits apiece, while Clint Mattson and Tanner Helin each scored three times.
Packy Lind went 4-for-5 for the Redbirds, while Mitch Dunbar, Brent Tholen and Luke Selken had two hits each and Troy Jones added a home run.
The following evening North Branch dropped a 10-6 contest at Mora despite three hits by Pilz and two hits from Mattson, Jimmy Skroch and Noah Thorsen.
Then on Sunday, June 30, Isanti bounced back to hang a 14-4 run-rule victory on Nowthen.
Selken was 5-for-6 with a pair of RBIs and four runs scored in the contest, while Brandon Kamprud went 4-for-5 with a double and three RBIs to lead the Isanti offense.
Bud Heiford came on in relief in the second inning and shut down the Knights, allowing just one hit and two walks in 5.1 scoreless innings to earn the win.
The Rum River Bandits started last week off with a lopsided win, then was beaten twice over the weekend.
Rum River run-ruled Ham Lake 17-1 at home on Wednesday, June 26. Duke Waxberg led the offense by going 4-for-4, while Seth Plohasz went 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Kevin Auth bashed a home run and finished with four RBIs and two runs scored.
Brayden Olson started for the Bandits and got the win by holding Ham Lake to one hit while striking out eight in four innings.
On Saturday, June 29, Rum River was on the wrong side of a rout, dropping a 14-1 decision to Chisago Lakes. Four Bandit pitchers combined to surrender 14 hits and 11 walks while hitting six batters, and four errors did not help.
Rum River closed the week with a 6-3 home loss to Quamba the next day. Owen Forschen and Jaxson Skoglund combined for four of the team’s five hits, while Auth pounded a two-run double.
Only Isanti will be busy this coming week, with Braham, North Branch and Rum River taking the Fourth of July week off.
Isanti hosted Shoreview on Tuesday, July 2, in a contest that was not completed at press time. The Redbirds will take the field next on Saturday, July 6, when they host Quamba in a 2 p.m. start, then will return to action the following afternoon versus Ramsey, with first pitch set for 1 p.m.
Rum River will play six games in seven days the following week, starting with a contest at Princeton on Monday, July 8, and a home game against Ogilvie two nights later.
The Bandits will host Nowthen on Friday, July 12, then host Twin Ports in a doubleheader the next day before taking a road trip to Mora on Sunday, July 14.
North Branch returns to action on Thursday, July 11, against East Bethel at St. Francis, then will play three games in two days thanks to a Saturday, July 13, twinbill against Chisago Lakes and a home game against Elk River the following afternoon.
Braham will not return to action until it plays at Ogilvie on Saturday, July 13.
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