Photos compliments of PolarLeague.com Taylor Baham swings at a pitch in the game versus the Esko Eskimos on Thursday, May 7. The Vikings lost to Esko, but went on to face the Floodwood Polar Bears less than an hour later. The Vikes beat Floodwood, 15-1.
The Cook County baseball team won four of five games last week to improve its overall season record to 12-2. After wins in Silver Bay and at home against Ely, the Vikings lost a close game on the road to Esko, 9-12. The Vikings then rebounded to beat Floodwood on the road and Duluth Marshall at home. Cook County currently sits in third place in the Polar League Conference behind Two Harbors and Moose Lake- Willow River.
Silver Bay
On Monday, May 4, the Vikings traveled to Silver Bay. Cook County started things off in the first when Taylor Baham and Miles Drake both took advantage of walks to score. The Mariners quickly answered with three runs of their own as the Vikings trailed 2-3.
Drew Holmen scored for the Vikings in the second, but the Mariners added a run of their own to keep a one run lead, 3-4.
After scoreless third and fourth innings, the Vikings started off the fifth inning when Drake was hit by a pitch. Sammy Warren then singled to drive in Drake. Rude then got on base, which was followed by back-to-back doubles by Holmen and Cody Everson. Cook County now had a 7-4 lead after five innings of play.
With two outs in the sixth, Sammy Warren jacked a homerun to extend the Viking lead to 8-4. In the bottom of the seventh, the Mariners managed to score two runs, but Cook County held on for the road win, 8-6.
Wade Hoffer was the winning pitcher and improved to 3-0 on the season. Hoffer pitched six innings, giving up four runs on five hits while striking out three. Warren was two for four in the game with a homerun and two RBIs. Holmen also had a great game, going two for three and stealing four bases.
Ely
The very next day, the Vikings were at home against the Ely Timberwolves. Before the game, Head Coach Arleigh Jorgenson was recognized as the field was named in his honor.
Warren then took no time to get going on the mound, striking out two of the first three batters to retire the Timberwolves. Junior Jacob Rude started the first when he hit a one-out single and promptly stole second base. Two hitters later, Warren hit a RBI single to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead.
Following a scoreless second inning, the Vikings exploded in the third for four consecutive hits, which included back-to-back singles by Warren and Darryl Hansen. Holmen then followed with a double and Casey Everson hit a single as Cook County now had a 4-0 lead after three innings of play.
Drake, Warren, and Holmen all scored in the fourth inning to increase the Viking lead to 7-0. Warren was a bit sporadic on the mound, as he walked four batters, but he got away with it as no one was hitting off of him either. The Vikings added an insurance run in the fifth when Cody Everson scored on a wild pitch. Cook County went on to win 8-0.
Warren struck out eight batters in the shutout win as he improved to 3-0 as a starter. Warren also led the Vikings with three hits and two RBIs. Casey Everson and Holmen also each had two hits and two RBIs in the Viking win.
Esko
On Thursday, May 7, the Vikings left early to play a double header of sorts. At noon, the Vikings would play in Esko and then go to Floodwood after the game to take on the Polar Bears. The pivotal Polar League match up against Esko was originally scheduled as a home game for Cook County, but with limited make-up dates, the Vikings got the short end of the stick, and had to play Esko on the road.
After two innings of play, the Vikings were leading 2-1 behind the strong pitching of James Groth. Cook County added two runs in the third inning when Drake and Hansen both scored to give the Vikings a 4-1 lead.
The Eskimos, however, responded with a six run fourth inning to take the lead, 4-7. A wild pitch, a hit batsman, and two crucial fielding errors cost the Vikings.
In the top of the sixth, Cook County answered with five runs, all of which were scored on two outs. The Vikings, now leading 10-7, were just six outs away from victory.
Esko came right back to score five runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 10-12 lead. The Vikings were unable to answer in the seventh inning as their four game winning streak came to an end.
Drake led the Vikings with two runs scored, two hits, and two RBIs. Groth added two hits for three RBIs in the loss.
Floodwood
After a disappointing loss in Esko, Cook County’s team character was tested, as they would face Floodwood less than an hour later. Senior Miles Drake took the mound for Cook County and gave his team a much needed lift.
The Vikings dominated play, outscoring the Polar Bears 15-1 in just five innings of play. Drake spread out six hits in the win while only facing 19 Floodwood batters.
Drake and Warren led at the plate with both players each driving in three RBIs. An eight-run fifth inning ended any comeback hopes that the Polar Bears might have entertained.
Duluth Marshall
On Saturday, May 9, the Vikings played in an early morning game against the Duluth Marshall Hilltoppers. After Marshall scored two runs in the first off of Vikings’ ace Sammy Warren, the Vikings woke up by scoring four runs in the bottom half of the inning. Hansen’s two RBIs on a single gave Cook County a 4-2 lead.
The Hilltoppers were not intimidated, however, as they came right back to tie the game in the second by scoring two more runs off Warren. In the bottom of the second, Rude scored on a Drake single and then Drake scored on a Holmen hit to give Cook County a 6-4 advantage.
After throwing 40 pitches in the first two innings, Warren settled down on the mound, needing only 38 more pitches in the final three innings for the win. At the plate, the Vikings would score nine runs in the final two innings to win 14-4 in the fiveinning contest.
Warren picked up his fourth win of the season, giving up three earned runs and striking out four batters. Darryl Hansen led the Vikings with three hits and six RBIs. Warren and Holmen each added two more RBIs for Cook County in the win.
The Vikings played a Canadian school on Tuesday after this edition went to press. Theynow enjoy a short break in the schedule with their two remaining game coming up next week. Cook County will play in Two Harbors on Tuesday, May 19th and at BEST (Tower-Soudan) on Thursday, May 21. Look in next week’s edition for all the scores and highlights.
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