Junior Teeners Battle for Baseball Victories

The Milbank VFW Junior Teener baseball team sits 5-5 on the season with lots of recent action at the ball field.
The locals came away with two victories over Clear Lake in doubleheader action Monday, June 12, in front of their home crowd. In the opening game, Milbank rallied late to secure the 14-5 win.

Milbank started out with two runs in the first. Clear Lake answered with three runs in the second. Both teams added a run to its total in the fourth inning, but Milbank surged ahead with three runs in the fifth overtake the lead at 6-5. The locals then fired in eight runs in the sixth inning to secure the victory.

Isaac Schulte and Kaden Krause led Milbank with three hits and three runs each. Evan Erickson added two hits and two runs while Micah Dietmeier had one hit and two runs. Rounding out the offense was Mike Karges, Cole Swenson, Ben Schell and Bennett Schwenn with one run each. Kellen Hoeke chipped in with one hit.

Hoeke earned the pitching win for Milbank. He sat down one batter and gave up five hits, five runs and six walks. Swenson came in on relief to finish the contest. He struck out two batters and gave up two walks.

The second game was a back-and-forth affair. Milbank jumped out to an early 2-0 lead after the first inning, but found themselves knotted up at 2-2 at the end of three. Milbank used a three-run fourth inning to secure the 5-2 victory.

Schulte led Milbank with two hits and two runs. Krause followed with two hits and one run. Schwenn produced one hit and one run; Hoeke had one hit, and Karson Weber added one run for the locals.

Schell earned the win on the mound for Milbank. He struck out one batter and allowed four hits, two runs and three walks.
Milbank took part in the Watertown tournament last weekend, June 9-10, and finished 2-2 overall.

In the opening game, Milbank dominated over the Watertown White Sox by a score of 23-5 in just four innings. The locals produced its 23 runs on 10 hits while Watertown tallied five runs on four hits.

Hoeke and Schulte led the team with two hits and two runs. Schulte also had four RBIs; Hoeke, three, and Schell, two. Dietmeier was walked four times with Schell walking to first twice and Karges, once.

Schulte earned the victory on the mound with four strikeouts. He allowed one hit, two runs and two walks in two innings. Hoeke finished the game by sitting down two batters and giving up three hits, three runs and one walk.

Milbank faced the Watertown Grey Sox and narrowly fell 6-5. The locals went ahead 4-3 after the first inning of play. Watertown overtook the lead at 5-4 after the second inning and added another run in the fourth to widen the gap to 6-4. Milbank scored a lone run in the fifth, but it was not enough to secure the win.

Dietmeier led Milbank with two hits and one run. Hoeke added one hit and one run while Schwenn and Schulte had one hit each. Karges, Schell and Erickson tallied one run apiece.

Karges started on the mound for Milbank and pitched one inning. He struck out three batters and gave up three hits, five runs and four walks. Swenson came in on relief and closed out the game. He struck out two batters and allowed one hit, one run and five walks.

In the third game, Milbank was shutout 2-0 by Sioux Falls East. The game was held scoreless until the top of the seventh inning when the opponent produced two runs to secure the victory.

Erickson led Milbank with one hit. Schulte started on the mound. He struck out seven batters and allowed three hits and three walks. Swenson came in on relief and gave up two hits and two runs.

In the final game of the tournament, Milbank rolled to a 11-1 victory over Pierre. The locals offense started out hot with four runs in the opening inning. By the end of the third, Milbank held a 10-0 advantage. Pierre’s lone run came in the fifth inning, before Milbank closed out the victory with a single run in the sixth.

Schwenn and Erickson sparked the team with two hits and one run each. Karges added a hit and two runs while Krause had two runs himself. Also contributing to the team totals were Hoeke, one hit and one run; Dietmeier, Schulte, Schwell and Swenson, one run each, and Aiden Rabe, one hit.
Krause earned the pitching win for Milbank with a no-hitter. He struck out eight batters and gave up three walks and one run.

Pictured – Kellen Hoeke pitching Monday night against Clear Lake.