A/C bounced in two Marawood-North games

By Nathaniel Underwood

The Abbotsford/Colby baseball team fell in a pair of conference contests last week, dropping games to both Prentice and Rib Lake.

Rib Lake, 5-0

The co-op kept the conference-leading Rib Lake squad in check offensively during their make-up road game last Friday but couldn’t generate enough offense to pull off an upset, instead suffering a 5-0 defeat.

It was a pitchers’ duel between Abby/ Colby’s starter Payton Schreiber and Rib Lake’s Talon Scheithauer. Both went deep into the contest, with Schreiber collecting all but one out and Scheithauer pitching all but the final two-thirds of the seventh. Both only allowed four hits all game, but the home team was able to do a little more with their limited production. While Abby/ Colby had their hits scattered throughout the game, Rib Lake was able to string together three of their four hits in the fifth.

Through three innings, neither side blinked defensively, taking a 0-0 tie into the fourth. A pair of base hits for Grayson Totzke and Jaxston Malzahn and a walk courtesy of Fernando Perez gave Abby/ Colby their best chance to score with bases loaded in the second, but the home team was able to hold them off the scoreboard.

Scheithauer helped his own cause by drawing a lead off walk to start the bottom half of the fourth and the home team was eventually able drive him in for the goahead run on a single from Brady Heiser.

A pair of leadoff singles and a walk for Rib Lake to start the fifth put them in excellent position to expand upon their onerun lead. The hosts were able to take advantage of the bases-loaded situation as a double from Seth Borchardt drove in three runs.

A single for Schreiber in the sixth gave the visitors a runner with no outs to start the sixth, but they left him stranded there as the Rib Lake’s defense was able to notch three straight outs to preserve the shutout. Another run in the bottom of the frame solidified the home team’s hold over the game.

Schreiber went five and two-thirds innings in the loss, giving up five runs on four hits and five walks while striking out nine batters. Totzke came in to get the final out, surrendering three walks in his appearance.

Carson Folz also had a single for the coop.

Prentice, 6-5

A seventh-inning rally for the hosting Abby/Colby club came up one-run short in a 6-5 loss to the Prentice Buccaneers last Thursday.

Five of the combined 11 runs came in the final inning of the tightly contested game between the two Marawood-North squads. The Buccaneers were able to eke out just a bit more offense to turn the tide in their favor, but the co-op did not go down without a fight.

Defensive miscues would haunt the Abby/ Colby squad in the seventh. After a strikeout to start the inning from Payton Schreiber, the Buccaneers’ Jonas Staroba was able to turn a double into a run after taking advantage of a mistake by the co-op fielders. A second run would come in following another error and Prentice would use aggressive baserunning and a single to drive in a third.

The three-run inning broke what was a 3-3 tie and put momentum firmly on the Buccaneers’ side. With the top of their or-

See A/C BASEBALL/ Page 19

HIT THE CUTOFF - Owen Hanson fires the ball back into the infield after making a play in left field during the co-op’s game against Prentice. The sophomore also went 1-for-3 from the plate and collected a pair of stolen bases on offense for the co-op.

STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD A/C baseball

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der due up, however, the co-op was not out of the game yet. A double from Arturo Lopez gave the home team runners on second and third with no outs and Schreiber delivered an RBI single to bring the co-op a bit closer. Irvin Aguilera drove in a second run after an error on Prentice allowed Lopez to cross the plate.

With bases loaded and just one out, the co-op looked prime to continue the rallying effort. However, the Buccaneers defense locked down the final two outs, stranding a trio of Abby/Colby base runners and keeping the home team one run short of tying the game.

It was a tough loss to take for an Abby/ Colby squad that had led most of the game. A two RBI home run from Payton Schreiber in the bottom of the first immediately gave the co-op a lead over their Marawood foes. They then added another run in the fourth after back-to-back singles from Carson Folz and Jaxston Malzahn eventually led to a third run.

Lopez, who started on the mound, kept Prentice’s lineup relatively quiet during his outing. He only allowed single runs in the second, fourth and fifth, keeping his team ahead for much of the day. He went four and two-thirds innings for Abby/ Colby, striking out three while walking one and allowing four hits. Two of his three runs allowed were earned. Schreiber entered the game partway through the fifth and pitched two innings, striking out four while allowing three hits and three runs, though none of those runs were earned. Grayson Totzke collected the final out while allowing one hit.

Schreiber collected two hits, a walk and three RBIs to lead the co-op’s lineup. Christian Fuentes was also 2-for-3 from the plate and scored two of Abby/Colby’s five runs. Folz, Malzahn, Lopez, Ayden Michlig and Owen Hanson all had one hit each. Hanson picked up a pair of steals while Michlig, Schreiber and Folz came up with one stolen bag apiece.

HUSTLING DOWN THE LINE - Jaxston Malzahn sprints to first to collect a single during the co-op’s close loss to the Prentice Buccaneers last week.

STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD