Big wins for the CL baseball team; move record to 13-12

(Above) You make the call!  Erik McHenry made the tag, but the Iowa Falls-Alden runner was called safe on this play. -Reporter photo  by Chris Barragy

The Clear Lake baseball team moved its record to 13-12 overall and 7-2 in conference play, with some big wins this week.

CL 7, Iowa Falls-Alden 4

The Lions faced one of the toughest pitchers in the conference when they hosted Iowa Falls-Alden on Monday, June 19.

“We came out with some great at bats early to get a lead and then kept putting pressure on their defense throughout the game,” said Coach Seth Thompson.

Clear Lake scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning to take a 2-0 lead.  IF-A plated three runs of their own in the second inning to take the lead.  The Lions had a fantastic third inning, scoring five runs to take a comfortable 7-3 lead.  The Cadets scored one more run in the sixth, but couldn’t manage anymore as Clear Lake won, 7-4

Jackson Hamlin, a junior, got the win.  He pitched seen innings, giving up six hits, four runs and he struck out eight batters.

Zach Lester and Hamlin each recorded two hits apiece.  Chase Stuver smacked a double that brought in two runs.  Erik McHenry, Jacob Peterson, Nathan Tofte, David Ohs and Austin Warnke all had one hit.

Lester, Peterson, Tofte, Hamlin and Vohs had one RBI apiece.

CL 7, St. Ansgar 5

Clear Lake traveled to St. Ansgar on Tuesday, June 20, where they defeated the ranked Saints, 7-5.

The Lions came ready to play, as they scored four runs in the first inning.  They scored two more in the third, before St. Ansgar got on the board.  The Saints made a valiant effort in the bottom of the seventh, scoring four runs, it just wasn’t enough as the Lions held on for the 7-5 win.

“It was great to step outside of conference play and get a chance to play a good, ranked team on the road,” said Coach Seth Thompson.  “Our offense did a great job of putting runs on the board early and Tofte did a great job pitching against a team that has hitters that are tough to get out.”

Nathan Tofte got the win.  He pitched six innings, giving up three hits, one run and he struck out five.

Tofte also led the team at the plate with three hits, one being a triple and he recorded one RBI.  Zach Lester, Jacob Peterson, and David Vohs all had multiple hits.

Peterson and Vohs led the team with two RBIs apiece.

“We made things a little more interesting in the last inning than we wanted, but luckily we had built a big enough lead to withstand their late-game charge to get the win.”

CL 8, Humboldt 7

Humboldt gave Clear Lake a run for its money on Wednesday night, June 21.  It was a back and forth battle from beginning to end, with an extra inning being needed to give Clear Lake an 8-7 victory.

“I could not be prouder of our players and coaches in getting this huge conference win on the road at a place where wins have been very tough to come by in recent years,” said Coach Seth Thompson.

Clear Lake opened the game by scoring four runs in the first inning.  The Wildcats failed to score.  The Lions took the field again and plated two more runs to go up, 6-0.  Humboldt came out with something to prove, as they recorded five runs in the bottom of the second.  Clear Lake scored one run in the fourth inning.  The Wildcats knotted the score, 7-7, with two runs in the bottom of the fifth.  It took an eighth inning for Clear Lake to get one run to win the game, 8-7.

Jacob Peterson and Nathan Tofte had the big bats for the night.  Peterson was four-for-five at the plate, one being a double, and he recorded one RBI.  Tofte was three-for-three at the plate with two RBIs.

Ben Finn and Jackson Hamlin recorded two RBIs.

Finn was the winning pitcher.  He pitched seven innings, giving up six hits, three runs and he struck out three.

CL 3, Lake Mills 0

It was a defensive battle on Thursday, June 22, when the Lions

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hosted Lake Mills.

Neither team was able to score for five innings of play.  It wasn’t until the bottom of the sixth that CL finally got something going.  Zach Lester, Nathan Tofte and Chase Stuver all got hits that brought in runners.  The three runs is all it took for the Lions to win the game, 3-0.

“Our offense made some good swings throughout the game and we were finally able to break through with some runs in the sixth,” said Coach Seth Thompson.

Zach Lester and Stuver each had two hits apiece, one being a double.

Freshman Erik McHenry got the win.  He pitched the entire game, allowing three hits and he struck out four.

“Erik did a fantastic job on the mound, getting a shutout win against a good team and he only needed 72 pitches to do it,” said Thompson.

Valley 6, CL 4

Carlisle 5, CL 4

Ballard 10, CL 5

The Lions faced some tough competition in a tournament at Saydel High School on Saturday, June 24.

Clear Lake faced Valley, the biggest school in the state, in the first game of the tournament.  Despite giving it their all, the Lions fell, 6-4.

Zach Lester and Mac Adams split pitching duties.  Lester recorded the loss, giving up four hits and three runs.  Adams gave up two hits, one run and struck out one batter.

“Zach and Mac did a great job of keeping us in the game, but unfortunately they just had a little too much firepower to keep off the scoreboard,” said Thompson.

Lester led the team at the plate with two hits, a double and a triple.  He also recorded two RBIs. Erik McHenry also had two hits.

The Lions met the 2016 Class 3A State runner-up in the second game.  Although Carlisle is ranked again this year, Clear Lake gave them their money’s worth.

Clear Lake led, 4-3, heading into the seventh inning.  Carlisle plated two runs in the bottom of the seventh for the 5-4 victory.

“They had some really good hitters and unfortunately managed to get those two runs for the win,” said Thompson.

Coach Thompson praised the pitching efforts of Nathan Tofte for keeping them in the game.  Tofte pitched six innings, giving up eight hits and five runs.

McHenry and Lester had multiple hits for the Lions.  Lester again brought the big bat, with a double and a triple.  He also recorded two RBIs.

With three senior starters on the bench due to injuries, Coach Thompson was proud to see his Lions collect 11 hits against a very good Ballard team in the third game.  Ballard topped the Lions 10-5.

Jacob Peterson got the loss on the mound.  He pitched all six innings, giving up 13 hits and 10 runs.  He struck out one.

“Unfortunately, our defense let Jacob down, but I thought he did a great job pitching a complete game, which the team needed playing its 10th game in eight days,” said Thompson.

Tofte led the team at the plate going three-for-four at the plate.  Peterson, Finn and AJ Stevenson also recorded multiple hits.

Finn led the team with two RBIs.

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