One of the most incredible come-from-behind wins I've ever seen in baseball happened in last year's State Amateur Baseball Tournament when the "never say die" Faribault Lakers came from eight runs down to defeat Green Isle 9-8 to advance to the semifinals.

Just the night before, Adam Jensen clubbed a three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth in a 4-3 win over Lastrup. Matt Lane had four hits in that game and factored in the eighth as well. Joe Grote connected on a two-strike hit, Lane got a hit and then Ryan Archambault sacrificed the two into scoring position when Jensen stepped to the plate and crushed the first pitch he saw over the fence.

Frankly I didn't think anything could top that game, and then came the Green Isle Irish. After five innings the Irish were up 8-0 and had clubbed three homers. The Lakers chipped away and got to within 8-6 on a three-run homer by Archambault. In the ninth the Faribault magic appeared again. Lane smacked a double to score Grote and Jack Helgeson and draftee Rick Bell hammered down the win on the hill for Faribault's 13th straight win. Helgeson had four hits in the game.

I'm not generally a superstitious guy, (I did wear #13 in baseball in high school) but that's where Faribault's winning streak would end. They lost to eventual state champ Sobieski 1-0 in the semis.

Undoubtedly another key reason Faribault did so well at state last year was the incredible crowds that showed up to cheer them on. I'm sure there will be a sea of blue in the stands again and Green Isle always brings a great following also.

Faribault begins this year's state title hopes against Green Isle on Saturday at 5PM in Cold Spring. The game will be broadcast on Power 96 Radio 95.9FM.

The Irish have a mixture of veterans and youth and come into the the game following a 4-0 tournament opening win over Wanamingo last Sunday. I broadcast the game on Power 96, and I'm sure Jack fans would say they probably should have won that game. The Irish were held to four hits but took advantage of numerous walks and a couple errors and stranded 10 Wanamingo runners on base, nine of them in scoring position.

Good teams find a way to win, just as the Lakers did last year and the Irish did last weekend. Green Isle has a team batting average over .300, and even more impressive is their team ERA of 1.75.

The Irish pitching staff is led by veteran Mac Zachow, who also hits third in their lineup. Zachow is a Sibley East high school graduate and product of Mount Mary College in South Dakota. His batting average is over .380 this season and he's been a State Tournament MVP in the past. No fewer than eight players on their roster are hitting over .300 on the season.

The Faribault Lakers' ace is Lane. The Peace Lutheran Church associate pastor has batters praying they won't see his devastating slider. Of course it is set up by an above-average fast ball. His ERA this season is 1.82 and he's also hitting at a .346 clip in the cleanup spot in the order. The Lakers have seven players batting over .300.

I won't predict the outcome of the game, but I will say the Lakers will undoubtedly start Lane, who did not face Green Isle last year. Wanamingo starting pitcher Alex Roosen held the Irish to four hits and had trouble controlling his off-speed pitches in the windy conditions in Watkins last weekend.

Faribault Lakers Region 3C Champs
Faribault Lakers Region 3C Champs
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