A local showing of the best in 14C amateur baseball players over the weekend landed Midway in the driver seat to face either Perham, Bluffton or New York Mills in the championship.
To start off the weekend of games, Bluffton will face New York Mills at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Aug. 13. Bluffton got there with a 10-0 win over Verndale, Saturday, Aug. 7; a 2-1 pitcher's duel loss to Midway, Saturday, Aug. 7; then a 9-4 win over Nimrod, whose only loss came from Perham.
The Braves could have secured that championship spot early with a win over Midway, but two solo hits from the Snurdbirds' Zach Etter were more than the Braves could put up after just trouncing Verndale an hour earlier.
In that game against Verndale, Josh Dykhoff had five RBIs, including a homer that drove in three runs in the sixth inning and a two-run single. Dustin Geiser held off the Bison with seven solid innings on the mound, giving up just three hits and tallying four strikeouts, according to coach Terry Geiser.
Against Midway, Jake Dykhoff pitched all nine innings and gave up 4 hits, 2 runs and notched 14 strikeouts.
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Against Nimrod, Justin Dykhoff went seven innings and gave up 5 hits, 4 runs and had 2 strikeouts. Josh Dykhoff pitched the last two innings, allowing 1 hit and had 3 strikeouts. Peyton Rondesvedt was 3-for-3 at plate; Isaac Hamann 2-for-4 at plate; and Josh Dykhoff 3-for-5 at plate.
Coach Geiser said the Braves should stay in the game if they can keep up their defense and get their bats working.
"I'm hoping that our hitting comes together soon," Gesier said. "It's been sporadic all summer."
The Braves have played the Millers twice during the regular season splitting wins with them. Coach Geiser said they'll take these games one at a time, knowing they have to beat both New York Mills and Perham before they get another shot against Midway.
In other action over the weekend
- Deer Creek was able to beat Verndale 6-0 in an early matchup, but later lost to New York Mills 11-1.
- Sebeka's game just wasn't up to snuff as they lost both their games; 7-4 against New York Mills then 3-0 against Nimrod. Likewise, Wolf Lake was out after losing the first game 9-7 against a very capable Perham team.
- Verndale's only win came in the first game of the playoffs against Park Rapids. That slugfest had the Bison win 15-12.
- Midway posted a 5-3 win over Deer Creek; 2-1 win over Bluffton; then a 12-2 win over Perham in eight innings. Midway will sit and wait for that championship showing at 4 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 14. Win or lose, they are headed to the state tournament for the 22nd time, as the top two teams advance. Winning pitcher and hitter for the Snurdbirds was Zach Etter against the Pirates.
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