Eagles barely slide past Shakopee

Suess puts away winning run to help New Ulm continue

By JIM BASTIAN

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- Matt Suess' two-out single in the bottom of the 11th inning scored Kyle Marti and lifted the defending state Class 3A New Ulm Eagles to a 5-4 win over Shakopee Tuesday afternoon at Johnson Park in a Section 2-3A elimination game.

The Eagles, now 19-3, will host Willmar Thursday at 5 p.m. Willmar (14-7) defeated Buffalo 11-4.

Bob Wellmann picked up the win for New Ulm -- his 27th career win for the Eagles -- in relief of starter Dusty Farasyn. Farasyn went 6 1/3 innings and permitted three runs.

Austin Baukol was tagged with the loss for the Sabres who finish their season at 7-16.

"I just wanted to see the ball -- hit whatever he threw me," said Suess, the senior right fielder who lined a 1-0 Baukol offering to center field. "It was a fastball middle-out."

Suess' single highlighted a comeback that saw the Eagles tie the game in the bottom of the seventh on a clutch two-out, two-run double by Nate Carroll that erased a 4-2 Shakopee lead.

"We got key hits from Nate Carroll and Matt Suess today, but we did not get a lot of key hits today," said Eagle coach Jim Senske, who saw his squad strand 14 runners on base in the game. "We have had runners on base but have not had a lot of clutch hitting."

Seven of the 14 stranded Eagle runnners were in scoring position.

Joe Peters led a 12-hit Eagle attack with three hits, and Carroll, Pete Meier and Suess each collecting two hits. Eric Austvold belted a first inning two-run home run. Carroll also drove in two runs.

Tyler Menden had three hits for Shakopee.

While the Eagles did not have a lot of clutch hitting in the game, Senske who now has a career record of 706-170-4, felt that both Farasyn and Wellmann had excellent outings.

"Farasyn pitched well and Wellmann came in in a trouble spot and probably got a pitch too close to the plate," he said. Farasyn hit Chad Bosworth with one out in the seventh and then allowed a single with New Ulm holding a slim 2-1 lead. Wellmann then entered and was greeeted by an RBI single by Tyler Manden and then a two-run double by Colin O'Brien that gave Shakopee a 4-2 lead.

"It did not look good for us going into the bottom of the seventh," Senske said. "But I have coached New Ulm for 40 years, and it is not the first time that we have had a comeback."

That would come when Meier led off with a single. After a flyout, pinch-hitter Josh Thorson reached on one of four Sabre errors in the game to put Eagles on first and second. After a Suess pop-out for the second out of the inning, Carroll drove a 1-0 O'Brien offering down the left field line to score both Meier and Thorson to knot the game at 4-4.

New Ulm mounted a huge threat in the bottom of the ninth when they loaded the bases with one out. But reliever Austin Baukol caught Carroll for a called third strike and then retired Peters on an infield pop-up.

"I was kicking myself in the ninth inning for not squeezing," Senske said. "But so many times it has not been successful with the bases loaded -- you pop it up for a double play. But we came back and are still playing."

Austvold's two-run home run in the first inning saw New Ulm take a 2-0 lead before Shakopee plated a run in the third on on a James Boys' single before scoring those three runs in the top of the seventh.

"We need a good game out of Tyson Anderson on Thursday -- we will see how we do," said Senske.

SHAKOPEE 001-000-300-00 -- 4 10 4

NEW ULM 200-000-200-01 -- 5 12 1

WP: Wellmann. LP: Baukol. 2B: O'Brien (S), Carroll (NU), Zellman (S), Marti (NU).

HR: Austvold (NU).