VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – This past weekend, the Valley City Saints baseball team traveled down to Enderlin to play in the Josh Berg Memorial/YBO Tournament. The Saints won the tournament for the first time as they beat Enderlin on Friday night 3-0, the Moorhead Mudcats 4-3 on Saturday afternoon in walk-off fashion, and defeated the Jamestown Greyhounds 4-2 in the Championship game on Sunday afternoon.
Friday: Valley City 3, Enderlin 0
For the first game of the tournament, the Saints opened up against a familiar foe in the Enderlin Indies. These two teams have opened up the tournament against one another the last two years with Enderlin sending the Saints to the losers bracket both times. However, the third meeting ended up being the charm for the Saints as Jake Miller’s two homers and Jesse Johnson’s complete game shutout would finally get them over the hump en route to a 3-0 victory.
Both teams would have their chances in the 1st inning. After back-to-back singles by Grady Karges and Gavin Wright to start the game, both runners would move into scoring position on a wild pitch. However, Indies starter Kalton Agnes retired the next three batters with no damage. The Indies would counter off Johnson with a single and a hit batter to begin the inning. Johnson would also escape with a popout and a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning.
The Indies would threaten again the 2nd with a hit batter and a double putting runners on 2nd and 3rd. However, Johnson would strike out the next three batters to end the inning.
Valley City would finally get on the board in the top of the 3rd with a two-out rally. Wright got his second hit of the game and promptly stole second. Miller then would hit the first of his two homers sending Agnes’ pitch off the Eagles Nest in center field giving the Saints a 2-0 lead.
The Saints would threaten again in the 4th as they loaded the bases with two out, but would come out with no runs. However the 5th would be a different story as with one out Miller gave the Saints a 3-0 lead with his second homer of the game.
The Indies would have one more shot in their half of the 5th as they loaded the bases with one out on two walks and a hit batter. Johnson dialed in and struck out the next two batters to escape the jam and shut down the Indies the rest of the way to move on to the winners bracket in this tournament for the first time since 2017.
Johnson picked up the win for the Saints as despite walking two and hitting four batters, he only allowed three hits while striking out twelve Indies batters. Miller and Wright each had two hits for the Saints while Karges, Johnson, and Seth Soderholm each collected a hit a piece.
Saturday: Valley City 4, Moorhead Mudcats 3
On Saturday afternoon, the Saints would take on the Moorhead Mudcats, who advanced to the winners bracket with a 5-3 victory over Tolna earlier that morning. This would end up being the most exciting game of the tournament as the Saints rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the bottom of the 7th commencing with a Carlos Turpo walk-off two-run homer for a 4-3 victory moving the Saints into the Championship Game.
Both Saints starter David Whitaker and Mudcats starter Ashwin Stratton traded zeros through the first three innings with both escaping trouble in the 2nd. The Mudcats led off their half of the second with back-to-back one out doubles but would have nothing to show for it. The Saints loaded the bases in the 2nd, but would also come away with no runs.
The Mudcats would strike first in the 4th inning as David Dorsey hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Isaac Howe for a 1-0 lead. The Saints would punch right back in the bottom half of the inning as Jake Miller led off with a single. AJ Casario moved Miller over to second on a sac bunt. Seth Soderholm’s RBI single tied the game at 1.
The Mudcats threatened in the 6th inning as two errors put runners on 2nd and 3rd but would have nothing to show for it as Whitaker escaped another jam. However, the Mudcats would get to Whitaker in the 7th with a two-out rally. With the bases loaded, Canaan Fagerland singled in Andy Gravdahl giving the Mudcats a 2-1 lead. Noah Pilon would make it 3-1 as he hit a grounder in which Turpo bobbled, which scored Howe.
The Saints were not phased however, as Miller lead off the 7th inning with a bomb to right center off Mudcats closer Luke Levassuer to cut the lead to 3-2. After Casario struck out, Soderholm singled. Seth’s brother, Colter Soderholm came into pinch run at 1st. Turpo avenged his error the previous half inning as on the first pitch lifted a line drive to center which evaded the outstretched glove of the center fielder for a two-run walk-off homer.
Whitaker went the distance for the Saints, collecting the win allowing three runs (two earned) on ten hits, striking out three, and walking one. Miller and Seth Soderholm each had two hits for the Saints while Turpo, Shaun Kourajian, and Johnson each had a hit a piece.
Levassuer took the loss for the Mudcats. Stratton got the no decision as he pitched six innings allowing one run on four hits, walking one, and striking out five. Fagerland lead the Mudcats offense with three hits while Pilon and Tommy Horan each had two. The Mudcats stranded ten runners in the game.
Sunday: Valley City 4, Jamestown Greyhounds 2
The Saints met a familiar foe in the Championship Game, as they took on the Jamestown Greyhounds, who got to the championship on Saturday night with an 11-6 victory over the West Fargo Crows.
After the first two innings were scoreless, the Saints would strike first in the top of the 3rd off Hounds starter Brien Rice. After Rice retired the first two batters of the inning, the Hounds would make two critical errors. Grady Karges would reach base on a throwing error by shortstop Danny Fischer. The next batter, Gavin Wright reached first on a dropped catch by the 1st baseman. Wright and the first baseman collided with Wright’s momentum taking him toward second. Wright eluded the 2nd baseman’s tag and made it to second. In the meantime, Karges scored all the way from first. Jake Miller extended the lead to 2-0 on an RBI single, scoring Wright with Miller reaching second on a fielding error by the center fielder, the third error of the inning by the Hounds.
The Hounds cut the lead in half in the bottom of the 3rd as Rice helped his own cause by launching a solo homer off Saints starter Phil Almanza. However, the Saints extended their lead to 3-1 in the 4th as Will Hough blooped a single down the right field line scoring Carlos Turpo. Again, the Hounds cut the lead again in the 4th with another solo homer off Almanza.
The Saints added some insurance in the top of the 5th as Wright was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and stole second. Miller drove Wright in with a single making it 4-2.
The Saints bullpen of Colter Soderholm, Nate Rodriguez, and David Whitaker would shut the door on the Hounds for the final three innings. The only threat was in the sixth when the Hounds had runners on 1st and 3rd with one out, however Rodriguez would escape with no damage. The celebration begin once Whitaker induced a groundout to end the game.
Almanza got the win on the mound for the Saints as in four innings of work allowed two runs on seven hits, walking one, hitting two batters, and striking out two. After pitching the day before, Whitaker pitched the seventh and got the save, only allowing a single. Miller led the offense with two hits and two RBI while Wright, Seth Soderholm, and Hough each had a hit a piece.
Rice took the loss for the Hounds allowing four runs (two earned) on five hits, walking two, and striking out two. Kyle Leapaldt pitched a 1-2-3 7th for the Hounds. The Hounds offense was led by Rice and Fischer as they each collected two hits.
The Saints improve to 4-2 on the season and will play this coming Friday night as they host the Enderlin Indies at Charlie Brown Memorial Field. First pitch will be at 7:00 PM.