GMLOK’s baseball and softball teams played at Mabel-Canton and each game was denoted by a seventh inning comeback. On the baseball diamond, one of, if not the biggest last inning comebacks in “Journal Sports” history occurred. Mabel-Canton led GMLOK 8-2 heading the Bulldogs’ top of seventh inning when Eric Mundfrom’s squad went wild with an inning and a rally they will not soon forget. The Bulldogs scored 11 runs. Nine plated with two outs. A Sam Howard two-run single was the game-tying hit, as it made the contest 8-8. Blake Oeltjen then had the go-ahead hit, a two-run triple, to put the Bulldogs up 10-8. Connor Tangen capped the frame, and a huge personal game, by hitting a three-run home run over the leftfield fence. It put GMLOK up 13-9. M-C got a run in their seventh, but the Bulldogs grabbed the win 13-10. Tangen hit two home runs, starting the game with an inside-the-park solo homer. He was massive (4-5, 2 HRs, 6 RBI, 4 R) offensively while also collecting the pitching win (6 IP, 9 H, 8 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 K). Howard (2-3, 2 RBI, R), Courtland Drury-DeBoer (2-4, two 2B, RBI, R), and Blake Swenson (2-4, 2 R) also had multiple hits. Oeltjen (1-3, 3B, 2 RBI, 2 R) had the game-winning RBI. M-C, which had a four-run sixth to go ahead 8-2, was led by one-two hitters Cayden Tollefsrud (3-3, 2B, RBI, 2 R) and Issac Underbakke (3-4, 2B, 3 RBI, R) plus nine-hitter Darian Hershberger (3-4, RBI, 2 R). Kale Tollefsrud (2-3) scored twice. Underbakke (6 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 6 K) left in seventh inning and C-Tollefsrud (1 IP, 6 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 0 BB, 0 K) took the loss. The teams offensively took advantage of a 20-30 mile per hour wind blowing out. GMLOK improved to 2-2 (SEC), 2-5 (overall). M-C fell to 0-1, 0-2. On the softball diamond across town, there was also a comeback. It was not as big, but it was of the walk-off variety. The home Cougars trailed 5-3 entering the bottom of the seventh, but three straight reached with one out (including two by walk). Hope Erickson then authored a game-tying two-run double on a long fly ball to center. Pinch runner Syeirra Stortz scored the game-winning run on a Kailey Ingvalson infield ground ball to propel M-C to the 6-5 win! Cougar pitcher Tylar Wenthold struck out 15 in grabbing the win (7 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 1 ER, 5 BB). She helped her own cause as well (1-3, 2B, 2 RBI). Erickson (1-3, 2B, 2 RBI) had the big hit while Kira Snyder (1-3) scored twice. Emma Howard (3-4, 2B) and Lucie Voigt (1-2, 3B, 3 R) had nice days offensively for the Bulldogs. Mollie Voigt (1-3, RBI, R) helped. GMLOK pitcher Aspen Kolling (6 1/3 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 5 BB) struck out 15 in taking the loss. M-C is 1-1, 1-1.
Baseball/Softball: Comebacks Denote GMLOK/M-C Series
