The Worthington Trojans baseball team held off a final-inning Adrian-Ellsworth rally Friday afternoon to earn a 5-3 road win over the Dragons.
The Trojans were keyed by a three-run third inning that include an RBI double by Austin Gruis and a two-run double from Dom Pavelko. In the fifth, Mathias Noble led off with a triple and came around to score on a Pavelko infield single to plate the fourth WHS run. Consecutive base hits by Cade Grimmius, Logan Kerkaert and Manny Saravia resulted in an additional run in the sixth.
Travis Weiss, who tripled and later scored for Adrian-Ellsworth in the sixth, connected for an RBI single in the seventh to draw the Dragons within two, and Adrian-Ellsworth had the bases loaded with two outs. Noble then came on to pitch for the Trojans, and Joe Rahe struck a hard-hit ball right to Max Ostrem at third to end the game.
Tucker Brandner, Gruis, Pavelko and Grimmius had two hits apiece for Worthington, and Grimmius went 6 2/3 innings on the mound for the pitching victory, allowing just three hits while striking out 11. The Dragons, who dropped to 3-7, play at Minneota Monday.
WHS, meanwhile, went on to sweep a Saturday doubleheader against visiting Waseca, taking game one 16-3 and winning game two 7-3.
In the first contest, the Trojans bats were hot and head coach Steve Robinson noted that line drives were flying everywhere. Ostrem went the distance for the win on the mound and Brandner homered. That was only the beginning for Brandner, as he crushed two more round-trippers in the second game while also pitching the first five innings to earn the win. Noble tossed the final two frames.
WHS, now 6-5 this spring, plays at Fairmont on Tuesday.
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Multiple high schools from around the region -- and the Midwest -- competed Saturday at the Howard Wood Relays in Sioux Falls.
Freshman sensation Brynn Bakken of Hills-Beaver Creek won the 100 meters with a time of 11.98 seconds, and she also finished sixth in the long jump. Also placing first in the Distance Medley Relay of 4000 meters was the Marshall quartet of Katelyn Leibfried, Anna Kuecker, Landrey Graven and Taleigha Bigler, who finished with a time of 12:58.88. Other top female placers from the region were: Jenna DeBates of Luverne, seventh in the 3200 meters; Allyson Sample of Marshall, eighth in the 3200; and Autumn Deutz of Marshall, ninth in the pole vault.
In boys competition Saturday, top individual placers from the area included: Josh Leibfried of Marshall, seventh in the 1600 meters; Isaiah Johnson of George-Little Rock, eighth in the 200 meters; and Alexander Franson of Marshall, 10th in the 400 meters. Marshall placed second and Luverne third in the Distance Medley Relay of 4000 meters.
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Minnesota West’s baseball team split a doubleheader Friday at Rochester, losing the first game 4-1 and winning the second 7-1.
The Bluejays managed just two hits in the opener, and Robert Reyes drove in the lone run. Jordan Bauer took the pitching loss while hurling a complete game.
In the second contest, Fernando Marte and Corwin Laurence connected for two hits apiece and Marte and Axell Espino each drove in a pair of runs. Joe Zhu and Daniel Castro both had doubles, and Reyes contributed a triple. Tristan Sauerbrei tossed a complete-game three-hitter on the mound.
With the split, the Bluejays moved to 14-20 on the season.
