HIBBING—With the playoffs fast approaching, the Hibbing amateur baseball team is fighting for a top seed in the tournament.
The Miners took one step closer to that by pounding out 12 hits en route to an 11-0, 10-run rule victory over Rainy River Wednesday at Al Nyberg Field.
That sets the stage for a crucial game Saturday against Roseau, beginning at 1 p.m. at Al Nyberg Field.
“Last year, we were the two teams that went to state out of this region,” Schafer said. “They have some guys that can throw. They have some depth. They have some veteran guys. They’re not a team we can take lightly. We expect a competitive game.”
It’s a game for the No. 2 seed in the region,
“This is one game for all of the marbles,” Schafer said. “The No. 2 seed is on the line. It’s for all four points. The two seed is important. Not only do you host in the first round, but you’re the home team playing the night game on Saturday in regions against the No. 3 seed from the other league.
“They’re a team that comes and competes. They play the game the right way. We understand that they will be ready to go. They understand what’s at stake, too. They’re a well-rounded team. We’ve been stressing that here in the last month of the season how important that No. 2 seed is.”
To get this point meant Hibbing had to take care of the North Stars, but at first, it looked like Rainy River came to play.
The North Stars first inning started out on a positive note as Will Gilbert and Joe Talmage hit back-to-back singles, but Hibbing starting pitcher Dan Wood struck out the next two hitters and got Blaine Humbert to hit a fielder’s choice ground ball.
From there, Wood shined through the first five innings, finishing with a two-hitter, striking out nine.
“Woody kind of settled in there,” Schafer said. “He was vintage Dan Wood. He was about 80-percent strikes-to-ball ratio. He was efficient over five innings, with about 65 pitches over five innings.
“He threw well.”
Wood still needed some run support, and he got that in the first inning when Joe Lescarbeau doubled, then took third on a ground out.
The Miners first inning started with a double by Joe Lescarbeau. He took third on a ground out, then Gideon Beck was hit by a pitch. Kodi Miller lined a shot out to left field to score Lescarbeau with a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0.
“When you’re the home team, you can set the tone for the game,” Schafer said. “We wanted to come in here and take care of business, thenmove o to Saturday for an important game for the two seed.”
After Wood retired Rainy River in order in the second, Hibbing came back with three runs to take a 4-0 lead.
John Wengenroth and Kyler Miller both walked, then Mike Belich singled home a run. Lescarbeau hit an RBI fielder’s choice ground ball, and Beck followed with an RBI triple.
Wood had a quick third inning as well, which allowed the Miners to really take control the game.
After Nick Peters reached on a fielder’s choice ground ball, Wengenroth singled. Kyler Miller followed with an RBI base it, then Belich hit an RBI groundout to make it 6-0.
Lescarbeau finished off the scoring with an RBI base hit to give Hibbing back-to-back three-run innings.
“One through nine, this summer, we have guys that we can trust,” Schafer said. “We have guys that have quality-, college-level at bats. “They know what they want, and they take advantage of the ones that they want.
“That’s good to see. When they’re producing, we know we’re going to be in good shape.”
The Miners had a scoreless fourth inning, then they added one run in the fifth as Peters singled, then Wengenroth hit a ground ball to third.
Peters, who was running on the play, rounded second and took third. The throw was wild, allowing him to score.
Hibbing put the game away in the sixth with another three-run inning.
Beck and Kodi Miller both singled. Hedley hit a fielder’s choice ground ball to put runners on first and third.
Hedley would steal second, then Lane Gerber singled home a run. Nick Shea followed with an RBI single, then Kyler Miller hit an RBI triple.
“Everytime, it was about staying focused on our at bats,” Schafer said “We had good at bats and extended that lead. The goal was to kind of get into that 10-run situation and take care of business and move on to the next one.
“Outside of that (the fourth inning), for the most part, we were patient at the plate. We drew quite a few walks. We hit the ball hard. There was a lot of good barrel contact. That was good.”
Hedley would come into the game in relief of Wood. He tossed two innings, giving up one hit. He struck out two.
Owen Sether started for the North Stars. He worked four innings, giving up six hits. He struck out two and walked four. Will Gibert worked one inning, giving up one hit. He walked two.
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