Some much-needed rain for the area this weekend has created some changes with the schedule for the Region 13C amateur baseball playoffs.
Jackson and Fairmont had their decisive Game 3 moved to a 7:30 p.m. start Monday at Herb Wolf Field in Fairmont.
The teams have played a pair of one-run games to start the series with the home team winning each time. The Martins won the opener 4-3 and the Bulls took the second game 1-0.
Jackson Manager Scott Bahr anticipates another tight matchup.
“We were ahead 3-2 in the eighth inning and wound up losing 4-3,” Bahr said. “And then we had a 1-0 game that was obviously close throughout and we held on. You have to expect it’s going to be another one of those.”
And with amateur baseball, you never know when a schedule change from a weekend to a workday means a player has difficulty making it to the game and causes a shuffling of a team’s lineup.
“I know they have a drafted player (Windom’s Ross Ackerman) who’s probably going to show up,” Bahr said on Friday night in anticipation of a Sunday game. “I don’t know how they’ll go, but that’s what we’re expecting. We have Evan Olesen and we also have a drafted player (Pipestone’s Brandan Alfson). We’ll need to make a decision. It’ll probably take multiple pitchers, maybe three or four to win a game and everybody will step up.”
The schedule has been a little more complicated in the Final Four series between Luverne and Hadley. The Redbirds beat the Buttermakers 5-2 in the first game in that series Wednesday in Luverne.
Game 2 was scheduled for Saturday at Hadley but was postponed and rescheduled for Sunday in Luverne. If the Buttermakers were to win, Game 3 would have followed.
But, with the weather not conducive to drying out the field and more rain falling, Game 2 was moved to 6:30 p.m. with Game 3 to follow if necessary.
The final round of best-of-three series is scheduled to start on Wednesday.
REGION 13C PLAYOFFS
Final Four
Luverne (1) vs. Hadley (5)
Luverne leads series 1-0
Wednesday, Aug. 2 – Luverne 5, Hadley 2
Monday, Aug. 7 – at Luverne, 6:30 p.m.
Monday, Aug. 7 – (if necessary) at Luverne, 30 minutes following first game
Fairmont (2) vs. Jackson (6)
Series tied 1-1
Wednesday, Aug. 2 – Fairmont 4, Jackson 3
Friday, Aug. 4 – Jackson 1, Fairmont 0
Monday, Aug. 7 – at Fairmont 7:30 p.m.
Larchwood wins
One of the nonleague games the Bulls played was at Larchwood, Iowa, a game Jackson won 10-4.
The Diamonds won their first-round game in the South Dakota Class B state tournament, beating the Wessington Springs Owls 10-0 in eight innings Saturday in Mitchell.
That will match the Iowa team with Crofton, Neb. In the second round at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Jacobsen update
Jackson County Central graduate Gavin Jacobsen made his fourth appearance in his time with the St. Cloud Rox of the Northwoods League this past week vs. the LaCrosse Loggers.
Jacobsen has a 1-1 record, allowing nine runs on 11 hits in 7 2/3 innings, walking seven, hitting one and striking out eight.
St. Cloud is 17-10 and in second place in the Great Plains West Division second half standings, 1.5 games behind the Willmar Stingers. The Rox finished second behind the Stingers in the first half standings.
St. Cloud is at Bismarck today (Sunday) and Duluth Monday. The Rox then close out the regular season with one game vs. the Duluth Huskies, two vs. the Minot Hot Tots and two vs. the Minnesota Mud Puppies.
Anderson named MVP
Fairmont graduate Eli Anderson was named the Most Valuable Player in the Dairyland Collegiate League, a college summer league based in Lake Mills, Wis.
Anderson, who has played one season at NIACC, played this summer with the Maunesha River Rats, based in Waterloo.
Anderson played in all 29 of the Rats’ games. He won the league batting title with a .438 average as he had 46 hits in 105 at bats. Anderson also tied for first in runs scored (32), was second in doubles (11), and second in triples (3).
In addition, Anderson walked 13 times and was hit by a pitch three times for a .504 on-base percentage, collected 16 runs batted in and was 33-for-35 in stolen base attempts.
Maunesha River had a 15-14 record and finished in second place in the Dairyland Collegiate League.
Now that the DCL season is complete, Anderson has joined the Mankato MoonDogs for the remainder of their season.
Becker update
Fairmont graduate Luke Becker is hitting .241 with the Spire City Ghost Hounds of the Atlantic League. He has 70 hits in 291 at bats in 79 games.
Becker has 14 doubles, two triples, 11 home runs, scored 58 runs, has 33 RBI and eight stolen bases.
The Ghost Hounds have an 11-14 record and are in fourth place in the South Division in the second half of the season. They finished fourth in the first half.
Spire City is in the middle of a four-city, 12-game road trip.