Panthers come out on top Friday in second of 2 straight extra-innings game
The Panther baseball team is 1-1 in extra-inning games this spring, and that was just week.
For the second straight day, TMB, losers of five of its previous six games going into Friday’s tilt, found itself having to work over time again, this time against Edgerton/Southwest Christian. But unlike the day before, the ending was much better, as the Panthers rallied to earn a hardfought, 9-8 non-conference home win.
“I think this game shows our resiliency,” TMB’s Griffin Zick said. “Thursday was a tough game that didn’t end the way we wanted it to. It’s good for our team to have to deal with the same situation and perform better.”
TMB coach James Fultz said that he learned a lot from his team last week’s two thrillers. While one game ended badly and one on a good note, the common denominator was his team’s perseverance.
“You learn mistakes happen and bad at-bats happen,” he said. “For the younger guys, it just takes time to learn kind of the way baseball goes. I think losing (Thursday night) kind of carried over. I think they were kind of thinking, ‘Uh, oh, here’s another one, we’re not playing well … but they came together and grinded it out (Friday).”
The Flying Dutchmen indeed had their way early on Friday, building a 5-1 lead after 4-1/2 innings. But once again, TMB showed off its resiliency. In the bottom of the fifth, an RBI double by David Schuh, a sac fly by Zick and a Brody Hauger hit pulled the Panthers to within a run at 5-4.
AN EDGERTON/SOUTHWEST CHRISTIAN RUNNER just beats the throw to the plate as David Schuh focuses on the incoming throw.
E/SWC regained some momentum with two runs in the seventh, but the Panthers were quick to respond once again, and did so with some crafty baserunning that caught their foes totally off guard.
After Schuh scored on a base hit by Zick to make it 7-5, Aiden Sanow reached on an error that allowed Zick to advance to third. With runners at the corners, Zick came home on a balk called when Sanow took off early for second.
An infield hit by Carson Lanoue again put runners at the corners, and the Panthers pulled off more base path chicanery when Sanow scored on a second balk that was caused by the exact same call Fultz made a bit earlier to tie the game at 7 and send the game into extra innings.
“As a coach, you’re always trying to steal runs,” said Fultz. “You want the kids to earn it as much as they can at the plate, but you always have plays in to steals some runs, depending on the pitcher, depending on how their defense look. We have a call for that … you can sometimes tell when a pitcher isn’t super comfortable out of the stretch, and that kid did not look super comfortable.”
“Free runs are free runs,” Zick added. “We got a few hits, got a few RBI; we’ll take what we can get. Every run matters.”
Both teams went scoreless in the eighth and ninth innings — TMB left the bases loaded in the eighth — but the Dutchmen tacked on the go-ahead run in the 10th with a double and a single. But … stop if you’ve heard this before, the Panthers rallied.
Taylor Squires snuck a ground ball double just inside the first base line and would score on a laser to center by Connor Lanoue to once against tie the game. Later, Schuh and Jackson Kruse both struck out but reached base when the third strike was mishandled by the catcher. That loaded them up for Zick, who, showing off the kind of plate discipline a senior leader should have, took ball four to bring Lanoue home and end the game.
Schuh had a rough start on the mound for the Panthers. The senior did strike out eight batters, but walked four as well in four innings of work. Squires, who is normally behind the plate, threw 2-1/3 innings of effective relief, striking out five and allowing two runs; and Hauger was a monster to close things out, allowing just one run in 3-2/3 innings.
“It’s one of those years when we have three games a week and we’ve got to use a lot of guys — they need the experience,” said Fultz.
Jackson Kruse had two hits, and Squires, Connor Lanoue and Schuh both drove in two runs in a game that featured 17 walks.
E/SWC 300 200 200 1 — 8 9 2 TMB 001 030 300 2 — 9 11 2
Schuh, Squires (5), Hauger (W, 6) and Squires and Schuh. 2B: Schuh, Hauger, Squires, Connor Lanoue. HBP: Zick.
MAY 4: TMB 8, CMCS 2
A pair of three-run innings lifted the Panthers to an 8-2 win over Central Minnesota Christian on Monday.
TMB (6-6, 4-3 Camden) outhit the Bluejays 9-3, as pitchers Griffin Zick and Jackson Kruse combined to hold CMCS at bay.
Taylor Squires, Connor Lanoue and Aiden Sanow each had two hits, and Kruse drove in a season-high four runs. Squires and Lanoue both scored twice.
“Overall a great game,” TMB manager James Fultz said. “We had everything working. Grif had a great start, Kruse came in and cleaned it up. The offense was putting pressure on them all day. Not much to complain about as a coach.”
The game put the TMB defense to the test, as only one CMCS hitter went down on strikes.
“The best thing was we only struck out one of their batters and our defense played very clean behind our pitchers,” said Fultz.”
TMB 100 031 3 — 8 9 1 CMCS 000 100 1 — 2 3 1 Zick (W), Kruse (6) and Squires. 2B. Kruse.
SACF: Kruse.
APRIL 30: KMS 6, TMB 4
The Panthers’ offense got back on track Thursday, but it wasn’t enough in a nineinning 6-4 non-conference loss to KMS in Milroy.
Taylor Squires and David Schuh both had three hits as part of a 10-hit TMB attack. Schuh had two RBI and Squires scored a pair of runs. Jackson Kruse had two hits, and Brody Hauger and Brayden Marron each had one hit.
Kruse struck out eight in five innings and got a no-decision. Griffin Zick suffered the loss; he gave up four runs, but only one was earned. KMS plated three ninth-inning runs to break away from a 3-3 game. TMB put up a fight in the final half inning, but could only muster one late run.
KMS 100 010 103 — 6 10 3 TMB 002 010 001 — 4 10 3 Kruse, ZIck (6, L) and Squires. 2B: Squires, Kruse).
AIDEN SANOW connects with a pitch during last Friday’s game against Edgerton/Southwest Christian. Photo / Per Peterson
