Hubmen Earn Thrilling Win, Suffer Tough Loss Ahead of Four-Game Stretch
By Andy Buckner
It was a tale of two Tigers for the Jordan Hubmen baseball team last week, as they hosted Delano and Marshall in two games that could not have been more different from one another.
Jordan vs. Delano
On April 22, Delano visited the Mini-Met as the hottest team in the Wright County East Conference in the early goings of the season. They had yet to suffer their first loss, and the Hubmen set out to change that by sending junior Griffin Dahmen to the mound, coming off a stellar season debut.
After Dahmen shut down the Delano bats in the first frame, senior captain Shawn Klehr gave him some early run support with an RBI single that drove in sophomore Michael Thrune, who had reached base with a leadoff double. Dahmen would later help his own cause with a sacrifice fly in the third inning.
Finding themselves down 2–0 in the fourth inning, Delano’s fortunes began to turn thanks to a fielding error by Hubmen senior Jack Lewis. After giving up a single following the error, Dahmen began to show some vulnerability on the mound. Living up to their team name, the Tigers pounced on the opportunity with a three-run home run by junior Andrew Bruett. Staying mentally tough, Dahmen got out of the inning without allowing any additional runs.
“He showed huge maturity and growth there, just getting the baseball and going after the next hitter,” Hubmen head coach Brandon Arnold said of Dahmen.
Mitigating the damage proved vital for Dahmen and the Hubmen, as they were able to get the lead back—and then some—breaking through for four runs in the bottom of the inning.
“We capitalized on situations,” Arnold said. “We got guys on, got them over, got them in. Knowing what your plan is prior to getting to the plate is super important to execute, and we did that.”
Dahmen continued to grind through the Delano offense without allowing another run for the rest of his outing. Perhaps the highlight of his performance came in an 11-pitch at-bat that ended in a called strike three to end the top of the sixth, stranding a runner in scoring position.
“Those are fun situations,” Arnold said. “(Dahmen)’s got that bulldog mentality in him. When he has the baseball on the mound, he doesn’t think there’s much better than him out there—which is what you need to have to be a successful pitcher.”
In the final inning, the Hubmen’s lead was threatened, as sophomore Michael Thrune had to go straight from shortstop to the mound without an extended warm-up. While Thrune was able to get the first two outs, he issued three walks, loading the bases with the go-ahead run at the plate in the form of Bruett—the same adversary who had earlier given Delano the lead with his three-run homerun. The lefty hitter seemed poised to deliver again when he pulled a hard, low line drive destined to be a two-run single. Only one thing stood between the ball and the outfield grass: Delano baserunner Brody Geislinger.
The ball struck Geislinger in the leg, resulting in the third out on runner’s interference. A split second after the Hubmen’s lead seemed to be on the ropes, the game was over—and they were celebrating a 6–3 victory. It was the sort of ending those in attendance may never have seen before, and may never see again.
It may have taken a stroke of luck to seal the deal, but it was ultimately the quality baseball played by the Hubmen in innings one through six that earned the victory against one of their toughest foes.
“When you play clean games and you extend your leads like we did, it makes it a little less stressful when you have a four-run lead instead of going into the seventh with a one-run lead,” Arnold said. The head coach noted that it has been a point of emphasis this season to figure out ways for the Hubmen to win games because of their own successes rather than their opponents’ failures. With Dahmen’s tenacity on the mound, ample run support, and a willingness by a young pitcher to attack the strike zone in a high-pressure situation, the Hubmen did just that.
Jordan vs. Marshall
Unfortunately, the good vibes from the Delano win didn’t last through the end of the week. The Tigers of Marshall came to town and proved to be much more menacing predators than the Tigers of Delano. The Hubmen scored the first two runs of the game, but it was all Marshall from there, as they attacked senior pitchers Wyatt Clark, Jackson Defoe, and Blake Chalupsky for 11 runs through 6 innings—before adding 7 more in the top of the seventh. It ended up being a full seven-inning game, but the 18–2 loss left the Hubmen eager to return to the field this week and right the ship.
“We see really quickly the difference in the two games. Tuesday, we played a really clean game in all three phases: pitching, defense, and offense. Friday, we don’t play a clean game in all three phases—and we see the outcome,” Arnold said in his assessment of the dichotomous week. “It’s getting us to understand that when we do what we’re supposed to, we can compete with teams and we can find ways to win. When we don’t do what we’re supposed to, we see the outcome of that.”
The Hubmen will have four chances to show they understand their potential this week. Due to Monday’s home game against old Minnesota River Conference rival Le Sueur-Henderson (LSH) being postponed to Wednesday, the Hubmen will play four games in a row—starting Tuesday against Holy Family. Then, after the makeup game against LSH on Wednesday, the Hubmen will visit Mound Westonka on Thursday and close out the week with a home game against—believe it or not—another group of Tigers, when Albert Lea visits on Friday.
Notable Hubmen performances from the past week:
4/22 vs. Delano
Griffin Dahmen (Jr.): 6 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 5 H, 9 K
2 AB, 1 H, 3 RBI
Shawn Klehr (Sr.): 3 AB, 2 H, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 SB
Michael Thrune (So.): 4 AB, 2 H, 1 RBI, 1 R
1 IP, 2 K, 0 R, SV