New Ulm advances in Legion tourney

By JIM BASTIAN

Journal Sports Writer

AUSTIN -- New Ulm Legion Gold used solid pitching performances and a pair of double-digit hitting performances to two two straight games in the opening rounds of the Minnesota State American Legion Baseball Tournament.

Gold thumped Waseca 10-3 in the opener, then blanked East Grand Forks 11-0 in their second game.

New Ulm will face Excelsior tonight at 7 p.m. at Mayo Field in Rochester. Excelsior downed Winona 14-3.

New Ulm 10, Waseca 3

New Ulm Legion Gold used the middle three innings to do all of the offensive damage they needed, and righthander Andy Stolt pitched five strong innings as New Ulm rolled by Waseca 10-3 Thursday afternoon in the first round of the Minnesota State American Legion Baseball Tournament.

Stolt improved to 6-2 on the season and New Ulm rose to 31-4 on the year. Stolt allowed only five hits while striking out five while allowing one run. Dusty Wilfahrt pitched the final two innings giving up two hits.

Ian Serp, the first of four pitches used by Waseca (13-14) took the loss allowing six runs in 3 1/3 innings of work.

Brandon Reinarts led the 12-hit New Ulm attack with three hits and drove in four runs. Eric Austvold and Craig Spelbrink each had two hits with Austvold driving in four runs. Spelbrink, Stolt and Reinarts all had doubles in the game.

Steve Hansen belted a two-run home run in the seventh for Waseca.

"We hit the ball hard (in the first two innings) but didn't score," said coach Dave Kunz. "But we stuck with it and it was a matter of time. The second time around (in the batting order) we hit their pitcher pretty well."

Craig Spelbrink led off that third inning with a double to center and went to third on a Stolt groundout. He scored when Eric Austvold singled to center for a 1-0 lead. Austvold swiped second and Reinarts plated him with a hit to center. Reinarts hustled to second on the throw home.

A throwing error allowed Jamie Hoffmann to reach base and move Reinarts to third before Travis Thorson collected the fourth hit of the inning to score Reinarts for a 3-0 Gold cushion.

New Ulm pushed across four more runs in the fourth inning to assume a 7-0 lead. John Enter legged out a one-out bunt single. Spelbrink followed with a single to center before Stolt hit an RBI double to right for a 4-0 lead.

John Kominsky replaced Serp on the hill for Waseca and allowed an RBI groundout to Austvold that scored Spelbrink for the second run of the inning. Stolt galloped home on a Reinarts' double and Jamie Hoffmann followed by delivering an RBI single to center.

"Eric and Brandon are our table-setters," commented Kunz. "When they get on base or put the ball in play, good things happen; it makes the offense go."

Waseca notched their first run of the game in the top of the fifth following a Gold double play. Joe Ward singled and went to second on an errant Stolt pick-off throw before he scored on a Mike Wobschal single.

But New Ulm tacked on three more runs in the bottom of the inning.

Joey Schugel led off with a single and took second on a Rob Geistfeld groundout. Enter walked, bringing in Nate Brink in relief. Brink walked Spelbrink to load the bases.

After a pop-out for the second out, Austvold sliced a two-out, two run single to center for a 9-1 lead and Reinarts followed with an RBI base hit for a 10-1 lead.

"We took out Andy (Stolt) with that 10-1 lead," said Kunz. "He pitched five real strong innings. We could not quite push across that 11th run to end the game. I decided that with that lead, it was a good opportunity to get Dusty (Wilfahrt) in and get him some work in less of a pressure situation."

Eight of New Ulm's nine starters had at least one hit.

WASECA 000-010-2= 3- 6-2

NU GOLD 003-430-X=10-12-1

WP: Stolt. LP: Serp. 2B: Spelbrink (NU), Stolt (NU), Reinarts (NU), Hanoue (W) HR: Hansen (W).

New Ulm 11, E. Grand Forks 0

Gold pounded out 11 hits, three of them triples and righthander Bobby Wellmann held East Grand Forks to just five hits as New Ulm hammered EGF 11-0 in five innings.

New Ulm scored 21 runs and banged out 23 hits in their first two games while allowing only three runs.

Wellmann fanned three in the five-inning game, improving his season mark to 7-1.

Kyle Marston took the loss for East Grand Forks (40-15) allowing 10 runs on nine hits in his 3 2/3 innings of work.

Jamie Hoffmann led the "Heavy Metal" Gold team with three hits with Travis Thorson and Craig Spelbrink each collecting two hits. Both of Spelbrink's hits went for triples.

Travis Thorson drove in two runs with a three-bagger.

"We are coming ready to play each game," said Spelbrink who is now 4-for-5 in the state tournament with a double and those two triples. "We really want to win the state tournament; we have a fire going inside."

Spelbrink got Gold going in the second inning when he laced a one-out triple to rightfield and scored on a Dusty Wilfahrt groundout.

EGF would mount their only serious scoring threat in the bottom of the second inning off of Wellmann when John Johnson led off with a single. But Matt Simsonen grounded into a 5-4-3 double play. That would prove to be big as Eric Gast followed with a double to center and Nick Kjuas singled. But Dan Chevie ended the threat when he popped out to firstbaseman Joey Schugel.

Gold added three more runs in the top of the third inning. Brandon Reinarts walked and Jamie Hoffmann singled. Travis Thorson laid down a sacrirfice bunt that was fielded cleanly by Marston but his throw to first was dropped and Reinarts hustled home for a 2-0 lead with Hoffmann taking third. A double steal produced Gold's third run of the game and a Schugel suicide squeeze bunt caught EGF napping as Thorson scored for the 4-0 lead.

Wellmann, who was backed by great defensive plays in the game by first baseman Joey Schugel, right fielder John Enter and thirdbaseman Travis Thorson set down EGF in order in the third setting the stage for a seven-run fourth inning for New Ulm, all seven runs coming after two were out.

Austvold and Reinarts worked Marston for walks setting the stage for an RBI single by Hoffmann. Travis Thorson then drove a Marston pitch to deep centerfield for a two-run triple and a 7-0 lead.

"He (Marston) threw mostly curveballs and I like the fastball down the middle. But I don't see that very often" said Thorson. " (So) I waited for a hanger and I ripped it. Everyone on this team can hit the ball."

A walk to Schugel and a John Enter single plated Thorson to move Gold up 8-0 and Marston our of the game.

An error on a line shot by Rob Geistfeld off the secondbaseman's glove added two more runs and Spelbrink's second triple of the game brought in Geistfeld for that 11-0 lead.

"I hadn't done that for a long time (two triples in the game), commented Spelbrink. "Hopefully, I can continue to hit the ball like I have been."

"I was not concerned about their (40 wins) coming in," said coach Dave Kunz. "As long as our kids play the way that they are capable of and our pitchers pitch the way they can., we are just fine. Things are starting to fall in place; the kids are working hard even before the game.."

"We are pretty confident that we can beat anyone now," said Thorson. "We did not play our best ball in the district tournament. But now we are playing our best baseball and are ready to face anyone."

NU GOLD 013-70=11-11-0

EAST GRAND FORKS 000-00= 0- 5-2

WP: Wellmann. LP: Marston. 2B: Gast (EGF). 3B: Spelbrink 2 (NU), Thorson (NU).