Gold downs Fairmont

By JIM BASTIAN

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- New Ulm Legion Gold spotted Fairmont a 3-0 lead in the first inning before scoring six unanswered runs for a 6-3 win Monday night in South Central Conference baseball.

The game was called with Gold batting in the bottom of the sixth inning when a deluge and high winds caused the early stoppage.

Craig Spelbrink was the winning pitcher for Gold (2-3). He went five innings and struck out six, giving up three runs and three hits in the first inning. John Enter pitched the sixth.

Al Shaffer took the pitching loss for Fairmont (4-3). He went five innings and gave up seven hits and six runs.

Tony DeBerg, Olaf Jorgenson and Dustin Zellmer all doubled for Post 36, with Zellmer driving in all three runs.

Fairmont would get their only signs of offense in that first inning off Spelbrink as DeBerg and Jorgenson belted back-to-back one-out doubles to put runners on second and third. Spelbrink whiffed his mound counterpart, but Shaffer reached first on a third-strike wild pitch to load the bases.

After Spelbrink struck out Dylan Oletzke for the second out, Zellmer doubled over the head of Gold leftfielder Andy Stolt to lift Post 36 to a 3-0 lead. Spelbrink would then settle down and retire seven straight hitters before he walked Zellmer with one out in the fourth inning.

While Spelbrink was settling into a groove against Fairmont batters, Gold hitters started to get to Shaffer, the former New Ulmite, in the third inning.

Ryan Wellmann legged out an infield single to begin the third inning and was sacrificed to second by Stolt. Enter's opposite field single to left plated Wellmann to cut the lead to 3-1. Enter promptly swiped second, one of six steals in the game for Gold baserunners, and took third when the throw from Post 36 catcher Zellmer sailed into centerfield. Scott O'Brien walked and Ryan Walters' ground ball out scored Enter. Gold then tied the game when Shaffer's pickoff throw to first went off the glove of Chris Anderson.

New Ulm touched Shaffer for two more runs in the fourth inning. Travis Thorson led off with a single and Wellmann drew a one-out walk. A passed ball moved the runners to second and third and a Stolt groundout plated Thorson for a 4-3 Gold lead. Shaffer followed by plunking Enter and an errant pickoff throw to first allowed Wellmann to trot home.

Gold added their final run of the game in the fifth on a Mitch Stueber RBI single.

New Ulm had a threat in every inning, stranding seven runners in five innings.

FAIRMONT 300 000 -- 3 3 3

NU GOLD 003 21 -- 6 7 0

WP--Spelbrink, LP--Shaffer. 2B--DeBerg (F), Jorgenson (F), Zellmer (F).