Hits rain down for Legion Gold after drought

By JIM BASTIAN

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- For a New Ulm Gold Legion team that has been going through a hitting drought the last few games, Tuesday night's game against Fairmont brought some much needed rain in the form of hits.

Josh Sabatino, Bryan Kamm and J.J. Germscheid each had two hits and Tony Mielke drove in three runs with a bases-loaded double as Gold topped Fairmont 11-5 in South Central Legion play.

Adam Nilson got the win for New Ulm Gold (10-7) in relief. Nilson allowed just one run on one hit in his 3 1/3 innings. Zach Barrett started and was charged with four runs.

Ryan Elbert took the loss for Fairmont Post 36.

"I was a little disappointed early on when we had bases loaded in the first three innings and only had two hits," Gold coach Dave Kunz said. "We had four runs, but we really didn't help ourselves. But after that, I challenged them to get more hits and it started coming through."

Post 36 took a 1-0 lead over Gold in the top of the first when Scott Chirpich singled and scored on a fielder's choice.

Gold loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning with one out but failed to score.

Gold cracked into the run column in the second inning.

Joey Geistfeld walked -- one of eight walks issued to New Ulm batters in the game -- and Landon Rewitzer was hit by a pitch. He was one of five Gold batters plunked by Fairmont pitching in the game. Levi Stugelmeyer reached on a free pass before Elbert hit Brad Kraus to bring in Geistfeld. Gold then got their first hit of the game on an RBI single by Josh Sabatino.

But Fairmont regained the lead in the top of the third, scoring three runs aided by two Gold errors. Andy Williamson walked and took second on a Pete Bissen single. Simon Lueth reached on an error by Germscheid before a two-out walk to Jason Castillo scored Williamson. Two more runs scored on a throwing error by Rewitzer.

But Gold used two Fairmont errors, a balk, a hit batter and another walk in the bottom of the inning to score two runs.

Bryan Kamm was safe on an error, and moved to third. Mielke walked before Germscheid singled in Kamm. Mielke scored when Rewitzer was hit by a pitch.

New Ulm then got half of their hits in the game in the fifth inning when they scored six runs. Sabatino and Kamm rapped back-to-back singles before Neubauer was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Mielke then sliced a three-run double down the right field line for a 7-4 lead, and Mielke raced home on a Germscheid double to right. A Geistfeld single, another balk and a wild pitch moved Gold up 10-4.

Kunz said that getting half of his team's hits in one inning does not concern him.

"You have to work through things and right now some of our guys are not having good at-bats," he said. "But I also thought that some guys had good at-bats."

Both teams tallied a run in the fifth inning with Fairmont's coming on a Lueth triple -- the only hit allowed by Nilson -- and an infield out.

"Adam is working on using all of his pitches and when he does that, he is a very decent pitcher," Kunz said.

New Ulm scored its final run of the game when Kamm tripled to deep center and came home on a Neubauer groundout.

Gold hosts Worthington tonight at Mueller Park at 8 p.m.