Junior Legion

wins UMC title

New Ulm comes from behind in 6-5 win over St. Cloud

By JIM BASTIAN

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- Do you believe in magic?

Derik Johnson's one-out, bases-loaded single on an 0-1 pitch from St. Cloud reliever Mike Schultz in the bottom of the seventh scored Tyson Anderson from third and gave the New Ulm Junior Legion a come-from-behind 6-5 victory over St. Cloud to win the 2001 Junior Upper Midwest Classic title.

Andy Budahn, who pitched four innings of four-hit ball in relief of starter Mark Rolloff, got the win.

Mitch Williams took the pitching loss for St. Cloud. The game completed the tournament Sunday at Johnson Park in New Ulm.

Danny Boettger and Tyson Anderson each had three hits for New Ulm. Boettger got a one-out triple in the seventh inning that sparked the comeback. Adam Hoscheit and Anderson each drove in two runs.

Josh Laudenbach paced St. Cloud with three hits. Scott Kollman, Travis Winter and Kevin Fuchs each had two-hit games.

"This team does not quit," said Junior Legion coach LeRoy Flor. "We did not execute the way that we had been, but the team knew what they wanted to do (today). They wanted to win it all."

And it came in a style that is becoming the norm for New Ulm baseball at Johnson Park with the last-inning rally.

St. Cloud, which never trailed in the game, pushed across what seemed like a big insurance run in the top of the seventh off Budahn on three consecutive singles for a 5-3 lead.

After Williams got Budahn on a pop-out for the first out, Boettger sliced a triple to right field. Williams followed by walking Hoscheit and then uncorked a wild pitch that scored Boettger to cut the lead to 5-4 and move Hoscheit to second.

He went 2-0 to Tyson Anderson before he was replaced by Mike Schultz. Schultz worked the count to 3-2 to Anderson before he lined a game-tying single to center.

A passed ball moved Anderson to second base before Schultz walked Keith McClellan. He then got Nate Carroll in a hole at 1-2 before he hit him to load the bases. That action set the stage for Johnson, who got his first hit of the game, a line single to right, for the win.

"I just wanted to get a good pitch to hit," said Johnson. "He gave me a nice fastball right in the zone. I didn't think about being 0-for-3 in the game; I just wanted to get a hit to win the game for the team."

St. Cloud scored two runs in the first inning off starter Mark Rolloff on RBI singles by Travis Winter and Kevin Fuchs.

The Junior Legion trimmed that lead in half with a run in the second inning when Blake Thorson singled and pinchrunner Dusty Farasyn swiped second. A Boettger infield hit moved Farasyn to third before Farasyn scored on Hoscheit's suicide squeeze.

Rolloff's tenure on the mound ended in the third inning when he allowed two more runs as the result of two hits and two New Ulm errors.

Flor then brought in Andy Budahn to take over for Rolloff. "He (Budahn) did a yeoman's job; there is nothing else that you can say. He hasn't pitched for three weeks because of a sore arm, but he came yesterday (Saturday) and said that he could throw."

And throw, Budahn did, allowing only one hit until the seventh.

"My arm is getting better now," said Budahn. "I was kind of nervous when I came in (down 4-1). We were kind of down, but I just came in there and did what I could."

And like the rest of the team, Budahn said the team does not lose confidence.

"LeRoy (Flor) has helped us a lot and so has (pitching coach) John Fischer."

"We just kept our focus today," said Johnson. "And go out and play the way that we have been playing baseball."

Post 132 scored single runs in the fourth and fifth innings to keep within striking distance.

In the fourth, Boetter singled, stole second and came home on a Hoscheit base hit with three walks and a hit batter bringing in another run.

ST. CLOUD 202-000-1=5-11-3

JUNIOR LEGION 010-110-3=6-10=2

WP: Budahn. LP: Williams. ONE OUT WHEN WINNING RUN SCORED

ST. CLOUD 14,

WILLMAR 10

St. Cloud advanced to the title game with a 14-10 win in a game that took 2 1/2 hours to play.

St. Cloud took leads of 6-0 and 11-1 before hanging on for the win.

St. Cloud had seven errors in the game and out-hit Willmar 13-9.