MVL drops two games to Wabasso in cold

By BOB VARMETTE

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- About 35 hardy fans stuck around to see an answer to an age-old baseball question: Who does cold weather benefit, pitchers or hitters?

Temperatures during the Tomahawk Conference doubleheader between the Wabasso Rabbits and the Minnesota Valley Lutheran Chargers struggled to stay in the mid-40s. The wind chill dipped into the lower-30s during much of the two games.

But once they got warmed up, the Rabbits showed that in this case the cold weather favored their hitters. Wabasso picked up 17 hits to decision MVL 6-5 in eight innings and 10-2 at Mueller Park.

"I'd say it benefits pitchers, though," Wabasso first baseman Jim Frank said. "My hands were so cold up there. Every one I hit hurt."

Nevertheless Frank, after going hitless in the first game, warmed up enough in the second game to go 3-for-4 with a double that was just three feet short of being a home run. Frank, who had only two hits in the Rabbits' last five games, scored once and drove in a run.

Matt Samyn went 1-for-3 with a double in the first game, and then 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBI in the second game. Samyn singled in the Rabbits' three-run second inning of the nightcap and tripled in the five-run fourth.

"It's tough to hit in the cold with the vibrations, I know a couple of mine that I hit really stung," Samyn said. "I guess the advantage is a little toward the hitter because the pitcher can't stay quite as loose."

Wabasso (9-5, 7-4 Tomahawk) failed to record a hit off MVL first-game starter Aaron Madson through the first three innings. But the Rabbits chased Madson in the fifth inning with three runs after scoring twice in the fourth. They carried the offensive momentum into the second game, picking up 10 of their 17 hits.

"It would have been nice to pull off that first game," MVL coach Jeff Schoenherr said. "You could really tell that Wabasso with that win took that momentum right into that second game and we just couldn't get the momentum back."

Wabasso trailed MVL (4-9, 4-7) early in the first game. The Chargers picked up three runs in the bottom of the first inning with a pair of singles, including a two-RBI single from Tyler Morgan, who went 1-for-3.

Wabasso went up 5-3 before the Chargers tied the game at 5 with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Karl Struck, who went 2-for-2, doubled to lead off the fifth, and Jeff Dolan and Mark Rolloff each hit RBI singles.

Brent Baune drove in the game-winning run in the eighth with a double to center field off Pete Mielke. The hit scored Nathan Baune, who reached on a walk.

"We know that we're always in the game," Wabasso coach Chad Olson said. "Our pitching is going to hold the other guys and our hitting is what's won us a lot of the close games."

John VanLoy got the win in relief in the first game, working the eighth inning. Adam Schumacher went the first seven for the Rabbits, allowing five runs on six hits.

VanLoy (4-2) also got the win in the second game. He started and went the first five innings, allowing two runs on four hits. Justin Frank went the final two innings without allowing a hit, striking out three.

Wabasso led off the bottom of the second inning with four straight hits. The Rabbits got singles from VanLoy and Jim Frank, a two-RBI double to right-center by Justin Frank and then an RBI single from Samyn.

Justin Frank led off the five-run fourth with a double deep to the gap in left and Samyn scored him with a triple to the wall in left-center. Nathan Baune followed with a double to center that upped the Rabbits' lead to 5-2 and ended the day for Mielke (0-2), the Chargers' second-game starter.

"We've been hitting the ball very well the last few games," Jim Frank said. "It just took us a little while to get going in that first game."

Added Samyn: "We got things going well now. I hope we can keep it going for the playoffs."

Mielke was charged with six runs on seven hits in his three-plus innings. Mark Thiesfeldt surrendered two more runs in the fourth before getting out of the inning. Thiesfeldt gave up the Rabbits' final two runs in the sixth inning.

"We were throwing some guys we don't normally throw," Schoenherr said. "One of our starters has got a sore arm and a couple of the other guys have just thrown recently. We were working probably about our Nos. 4 and 5 pitchers. (Thiesfeldt) actually pitches at the JV level so we thought we'd give him a try in there."

Wabasso will be at Sleepy Eye St. Mary's Thursday for a scheduled doubleheader. MVL will host Buffalo Lake-Hector Thursday in a doubleheader.

1st Game

WABASSO 000 230 01--6 7 1

MVL 300 020 00--5 6 2

Schumacher, VanLoy (8) and K.Baune. Madson, Mielke (5) and Morgan. W--VanLoy 3-2. L--Mielke 0-1. 2B--Wabasso, B.Baune, Samyn; MVL, Struck. 3B--None. HR--None. T--2:16.

Madson pitched to four batters in the fifth inning.

2nd Game

MVL 002 000 0-- 2 4 1

WABASSO 030 502 x--10 10 1

Mielke, Thiesfeldt (4) and Morgan. VanLoy, Ju.Frank (6) and K.Baune. W--VanLoy 4-2. L--Mielke 0-2. 2B--MVL, Hoscheit; Wabasso, B.Baune, Ji.Frank, Ju.Frank 2, N.Baune. 3B--Wabasso, Samyn. HR--None. T--1:30.

Mielke pitched to three batters in the fourth inning.