Both the Cook County High School softball and baseball teams traveled to the Twin Cities on Friday, April 25 to play a double header against conference foes Floodwood and Carlton. The boys lost to Floodwood but came back and beat Carlton while the girls beat Floodwood but lost to Carlton. The next day both teams took in a Minnesota Twins game, watching the Twins defeat the Detroit Tigers at Target Field. Here the handsome group poses in front of the Twins new stadium.
After more than a month of shagging ground balls inside, playing catch and hitting inside a batting cage, the Viking baseball team got outside briefly on Monday, April 21, and then traveled to Two Harbors the next day to play the Agates, losing 6-1.
“Other than fielding a few ground balls in the wind on Monday, this was our first day outside, and there were a lot of positives,” said Head Coach Arleigh Jorgenson.
Senior pitcher Joe Borud struggled to find the strike zone in the second inning, said Jorgenson, but his replacement, sophomore Leo Johnson, “was lights out.” Frankie Miller was also solid, said Jorgenson, adding, “Joe will get it fixed.”
“This was a game we can build on. Owen Anderson, Frankie Miller, Jamie Wick, and Jaret Baker all hit the ball solidly.
“Kids were trying to bring the things they have been working on inside, and they had some success, but there was also some return to older form as nerves came to the forefront.
“Richie Furlong delivered the leadership we need from behind the plate,” Jorgenson said.
Loss to Floodwood
Friday, April 25 was a snow day for Cook County, but the CCHS baseball team managed to escape down the shore to Fridley, Minnesota, where they faced two conference opponents, Floodwood and Carlton.
Coach Jorgenson said, “We started out well, with a lead-off single by Owen Andersen which was followed by a walk earned by Frankie Miller. A wild pitch moved both runners up and Joe Borud hit the ball on the ground to the third baseman, who made an errant throw allowing both runners to score. Joe moved to second and then stole third, but was stranded there and Jamie (Wick) and Jaret (Baker) struck out and Rory (Bakke) grounded out to the pitcher.
“Following a solid outing versus Two Harbors, Leo Johnson took the mound for the Vikings and with help from his fielders, held Floodwood scoreless the first inning.
Jorgenson said his team scored another run in the second when Jack Wieben doubled and Owen Anderson drove him in before Frankie Miller grounded out to third to end the threat.
Johnson seemed to lose some control in the second inning and Floodwood was able to score 4 runs.
The Vikings and Floodwood played a scoreless third inning. In the fourth inning Johnson, “reached first on an error by the pitcher, and Jack Wieben moved him to third as the center fielder couldn’t corral his fly-ball. A great catch by Floodwood’s right fielder from Owen Anderson’s bat ended the threat and was likely the play of the game,” Jorgenson said.
Floodwood scored two more runs in the fourth inning to take a 7-3 lead.
Joe Borud led off the fifth with a single and stole second before Jamie Wick drove him in with another single. Control problems continued to haunt Johnson in the 5th inning.
After a walk and a throwing error by the catcher, Floodwood had a runner on third base. Johnson struck out the next batter, but Jorgenson felt he needed a break and sent in Frankie Miller to face the top of the order.
Coach Jorgenson reported, “An error in right field allowed the runner on third to score. Their next hitter flew out to center for the second out. A stolen base and a wild pitch moved the runner who had been on first to third. And then, after running the count 3-0 on their number three all-conference player, Riley Bernsdorf, we elected to walk him intentionally.
“Bernsdorf surprised us by continuing on toward second. Frankie threw the ball to second. Bernsdorf put on the brakes, diverting our attention from the runner on third, who stole home on the play, for their ninth run.
“The game ended with no further scoring. It was a game we know we could have won, perhaps should have won. Floodwood scored 9 runs with only three hits. Walks hurt us, as did some defensive lapses. This was, however, only our second day outside,” said Jorgenson.
Owen Anderson was 2-4 at the plate and Joe Borud, Jamie Wick and Jack Wieben got one hit each in the game. The Vikings walked twice while giving up 12 walks. Each team had four errors.
Vikings beat Carlton 9-8
Rory Bakke took the mound for the Vikings against Carlton and struck out seven in 5 innings, walking four and gave up five scattered hits.
“He worked hard to keep his focus all game on his throwing mechanics and did a great job. Four errors in the game hurt us, but several of those errors were simple mistakes this team will not normally make,” said Jorgenson.
Borud was outstanding at the plate, going 4-4. Anderson, Wieben, Wick, and Bakke each went 2-3 and Lucas Phillips and Richie Furlong each got a hit.
Anderson started off the hit parade with a lead off single up the middle. He stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and was driven in by Borud. Borud stole second and third and was driven in by a Wieben single. Wieben stole second and advanced to third on a single by Wick, who also stole second but they were stranded when the Vikings made a third out.
Bakke singled to lead off the second inning, but was forced out on a fielder’s choice when Phillips grounded to second. An Anderson single moved Phillips to second and each advanced on a wild pitch. Borud drove both of them home with a double. Borud stole third and scored on an error by the catcher.
Carlton scored three runs in the third inning and added another run in the fifth.
“Carlton took the lead in the top of the sixth,” said Jorgenson. “Frankie relieved Rory and began his second outing [of the day] with a little more shakiness than he had shown in the first game. He gave up a double to their leadoff hitter, but then got a comebacker for the first out. An error at second base occurred, followed by two wild pitches. Four runs were across and Carlton held a one point lead before Frankie struck out the next batter and got a line-drive out to Joe to end the inning.”
Jorgenson said the Vikings responded with a walk and stolen base by Anderson. Miller was hit by a wild pitch and Anderson and Miller executed a double-steal to put the tying run on third and the lead run on second with nobody out. Borud drove them in with a double over the left fielder’s head.
“We had a brief scare when we dropped a routine fly ball with two outs, but a ground ball to Wieben at shortstop ended a great day on green grass under a cool, but bright sun, with a 9-8 victory,” said Jorgenson.
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