When Alex Murray isn’t goaltending in hockey he is catching in baseball. Quick and sure handed, Murray also has a good arm and is one of the leading hitters for the Vikings. Murray also pitches for the Vikings.
The Viking boys’ baseball team traveled to Carlton on Thursday, April 12 and fell to the Carlton Bulldogs 10-7.
“We played well in that game and had the lead, but gave up runs in the third and sixth innings and lost,” said Head Coach Arleigh Jorgenson.
While the hitting was there, Jorgenson said the pitchers gave up 9 walks and hit two batters.
On Saturday, April 21 the Vikings squared off against the Marshall Hilltoppers at home and lost 14-4.
“We played Marshall in a snowstorm. We had one bad inning. Alex Murray had a rough start pitching but he recovered. We brought in Mike Sjogren to give him some innings and it wasn’t his best game. The pitchers were throwing off a quagmire of mud and clay. There were also three overt, horrible, calls that went against us. It wasn’t a well-umpired game. It wasn’t by intent, but the officiating was weak.
“One plus in that game was the hitting of Colin Everson. He’s starting to hit for us and we really need that,” Jorgenson said.
Senior pitcher Dylan Quaife is the Vikings’ ace on the pitching staff. Here Dylan is in action against the Silver Bay Mariners. The boys lost a close contest to the Mariners on Friday, April 20 at home. No stats were available for the game.
Tuesday, April 24, the Vikings traveled to Esko and played a good game but fell 7-5 to the Eskimos.
“This is a game that we could have—and should have— won,” said Jorgenson.
“We went up 3-1 and then led 3-2 before giving up 6 runs in the third or fourth inning. We rallied and brought the score to 7-5 and had two runners on but couldn’t get another hit. Both Mike Sjogren and Alex Murray pitched well in that game.
“Right now Sjogren, Murray and Everson are hitting well. Dylan is slumping right now but I can guarantee he will come out of his slump. We really need his bat. He will come around.
“We’re also missing the play of Kale Boomer who is out with an injured foot. Jacob Schroeder has been playing first base and while he is young, he has been getting better and better.
“Right now we’re disappointed. We have a couple of mistakes or one bad inning that hurts us, but we are improving each game. We’ll get there. The kids are working hard and have a good attitude. It’s only a matter of time,” said Jorgenson.
The next three Fridays the Vikings have games at home. Games start at 4:00 p.m. Box scores and stats will be available next week.
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