Faribault Lakers Run Out of Offense and End Season

The Faribault Lakers got another terrific pitching performance but were shut down by a draftee pitcher from New London-Spicer Sunday in a 3-2 loss to Lake Henry.

The Lake Henry Lakers started lefty Weston Brinkman.  He was lifted after throwing 59 pitches in three innings and giving up four hits.

Faribault collected just one hit the rest of the game off righty Patrick Courtney.

The one hit by Blake Langerud was also the only base runner for Faribault after the third inning.

Egan Bonde started the game for Faribault and threw 108 pitches in 7 and 2/3 innings.

Bonde saw the first three Lake Henry batters get hits in the first inning and then settled nicely into the game while scattering six total hits.

Bonde retired seven straight and ten straight before a one out walk was issued to the number nine batter and with two outs back to back single knocked in the winning run in the top of the eighth inning.

72 of Bonde's 108 pitches were strikes.  He struck out four and walked two batters.

Bonde did a great job of controlling the damage in the first inning after the first three batters had hits.  Back to back doubles followed by an infield single.

He then set down ten straight before a single in the fourth inning and that base runner was thrown out by Dylan Valentyn trying to steal second base.

In the bottom of the first inning Blake Langerud was walked to start the game and Christian Von Ruden sacrificed him to second base.

Joe Grote hit a towering fly ball to right field that Josh Kampsen dropped but the base umpire said he the ball was dropped during the transfer from his glove to his throwing hand and ruled Grote out.

After talking with the home plate umpire the base umpire signaled Grote was safe.  Joe popped out of the dugout grabbed a helmet and was running back onto the field when they told him to go back to the dugout because he was out.

Instead of runners at second and third and one out, Langerud was at third with two outs and Matt Lane hit a liner to center to end the inning.

Ryan Archambault had a lead off single in the second inning and after two pop outs Valentyn and Mitch Johnson were walked and Blake Langerud cracked a two RBI single to tie the game.

The Faribault Lakers got back back single by Archambault and Porter Sartor in the third inning with two outs and that was the end of seeing Lake Henry starter Brinkman.

After scoring the third run with two outs in the eighth inning Bonde was lifted and Faribault draftee from St. Patrick Bill Dunker finished the game facing five batters and retiring four of the five.

Faribault ended the season with a 27-12 mark.  They were regular season D-R-S League Champions and after being ousted early in the Region Tournament came all the way back through the elimination bracket to force a deciding game with Union Hill.

Faribault lost that game and opened in the State Tournament with a 9-1 win over Gibbon in Green Isle.

The second weekend Faribault beat Midway 6-4.

This past Saturday night they downed the defending State Champion Raymond Rockets 7-1 before losing in the quarterfinals to Lake Henry.

Union Hill was also defeated in the elite eight by Bemidji 2-0 and New Prague had a 4-0 win over Jordan to advance to the semi-finals.

In the semi-finals Lake Henry bested New Prague 4-2 and draftee Patrick Courtney got his second win of the day while Kimball defeated Bemidji 3-0.

Monday at 3:00 p.m. in Green Isle, Kimball will play Lake Henry for the Class C state title.

In Class B the Northfield Knights season came to an end when Moorhead defeated them 5-2.  Miesville then picked up a 6-3 win over Moorhead.

Defending Class B State Champion Miesville plays Chanhassen at Noon in Hamburg and has to beat them twice to repeat.