Jordan Baseball Battles Conference Foes, Ends Week on High Note
By Andy Buckner
After an 11-7 victory over the La Crescent Lancers on May 10 that featured some of the best competitive energy they have had all season, the Jordan Hubmen baseball team had some of their strongest momentum of the spring going into a week that featured two rematches against conference opponents.
On May 13, the Hubmen traveled out to Hutchinson to take on a Tigers team that ensured the precipitation that came down on the Mini-Met during the Hubmen’s opener in April wasn’t the only rain to fall on the team’s parade, shellacking the Hubmen in a 15-5 mauling. While the Hubmen would hold their ground somewhat more steadily this time around, the Hutchinson team that remains undefeated in conference play once again took home a victory.
Tyler Bohnsack was given another opportunity to continue learning the ropes of varsity pitching with a start against the potent Tigers offense. Having received early run support from an RBI single off the bat of junior Owen Maloney in the second inning, Bohnsack gave the run back in the third after allowing a runner to advance to third base on a wild pitch and then be driven in on a ground ball single to left field.
The Hubmen got back out to a lead thanks to senior Jackson DeFoe drilling a line drive to left field that scored sophomore Joey Lamusga from second base. Unfortunately, that would be the end of the Hubmen’s run production—while the Tigers' offense turned out to be just getting started.
The bottom of the fourth saw Hutchinson start off with a double and a single to put two runners on en route to a four-run inning. While it was senior Wyatt Clark on the mound to end the inning, all runs were charged to Bohnsack. Those runs came by way of a single, a two-run triple, and an RBI groundout.
“We hit a guy, made an error, they bunted to (put runners on) second and third, we threw the ball up the first base line, then all of a sudden the wheels kind of went off,” head coach Brandon Arnold recalled of the difficult fourth inning. “It was errors, (hit batters), and walks.”
Unable to answer back to the Tigers’ strong fourth inning, the Hubmen went scoreless for the rest of the game while Clark went on to give up three more runs, resulting in an 8-2 loss for the Hubmen and a season sweep at the hands of Hutchinson.
In hopes of avoiding another season sweep in Victoria against conference rival Holy Family, the Hubmen could be encouraged by the strong display they had against the formidable private school opponent earlier in the season, having allowed the Fire to barely squeak by with a victory despite being held to only two unearned runs. Any run support would have been an improvement over that defeat, and the Hubmen were sure to provide it—this time for senior Shawn Klehr, making his first start on the mound this season to give some rest to the Hubmen’s top two starting pitchers, Michael Thrune and Griffin Dahmen.
“We went with Shawn, who we know throws a ton of strikes, and that’s what he did. Credit to him, but also credit to our defense. (Klehr) allowed them to put the ball in play and the defense made the plays,” Coach Arnold said.
On offense, the Hubmen were able to give Klehr and the rest of their arms just enough run support through the first six innings. With an RBI double in the third, Thrune brought forth a great sign of progress in what has been a sophomore season packed with a seemingly equal amount of success and learning curves. Later in the game, senior captain Jack Lewis showed his veteran mettle by driving in Wyatt Clark with a solid single up the middle. That hit brought senior Blake Chalupsky into scoring position. Chalupsky went on to steal third base and incredibly followed that up with another stolen base, giving the Hubmen their third run of the ballgame.
Klehr ultimately turned in a solid two-run, four-inning performance before handing the ball off to DeFoe for another scoreless inning. Following DeFoe on the mound was Joey Lamusga, making his first varsity appearance on the mound in the sixth inning. While the rising sophomore with a bright future was able to keep Holy Family from doing any damage in the sixth, Holy Family senior Jackson Smith was quick to ambush him with a leadoff triple in the bottom of the seventh. With the tying run only 90 feet away, senior Jackson Ryan made it more than certain that Smith would be able to score—following up Smith’s triple with one of his own over the head of Klehr in center field.
Now with the winning run just 90 feet away and three outs left to get, the Hubmen had their backs against the wall. Lamusga did a great job of making sure the next batter would not be able to drive the ball too far to secure the victory, with Klehr wrangling in a fly ball and ensuring Ryan could not score on a would-be sacrifice fly. However, the Hubmen were unable to repeat that good fortune in the next at-bat. When Will Sandefeur drove a fly ball to right field and into the glove of Maloney, the ball proved to be too deep to be able to get the final out at home. It was a crushing 4-3 loss for the Hubmen, once again falling just short of taking down the conference rival that steadily had their number last spring.
“I decided to roll with Joey because of how efficiently he threw in the sixth inning,” Arnold remarked, citing the eight-pitch inning against the heart of Holy Family that started off Lamusga’s encouraging efforts on the mound. Undeterred by Lamusga’s inexperience on the mound, Arnold knew it was a tall task to ask his sophomore to close out the game against such a potent offense. “Nothing Joey did was wrong. He threw really well, they just came out and ambushed him. I told the guys the day after, ‘I’ll wear that loss on me as a coach.’”
Having yet to suffer a winless full week of baseball, the Hubmen knew that they could end the week on a high note when they traveled to Worthington to take on a 2-12 team for the last of five straight road games that brought the Hubmen to the eastern and southern borders of the state—a grueling stretch for any high school baseball team.
“When we got to Worthington, we ate at Pizza Ranch. We were a little lethargic at the beginning of the game. I’m gonna credit that to too much Pizza Ranch,” Arnold posited. He was able to joke about a slow start in the first two innings, as the third inning saw the Hubmen bring 15 runners home en route to a 17-1 steamrolling. There was more recognition earned in the game than what can be properly given in a single article. Suffice it to say, the bats woke up, with some notable individual performances.
Thrune continued his upward trajectory with a three-RBI performance. That RBI total was matched by Chalupsky, who seems determined to go out on a high note for the Hubmen. He currently leads the program in batting average (.347) in his senior season. Lamusga also was able to bounce back from the heartbreak he suffered on the mound, turning in his best showing at the plate as a varsity starter, with his two doubles driving in four runs. Senior Jack Pass was also able to collect the first two RBIs of his varsity swan song, and sophomore Sam Lewis had an opportunity to come off the bench, to which he responded with a two-run single.
With the onslaught against Worthington serving as a much-needed emotional lift, the Hubmen go into their final week facing uncertainty as inclement weather lurks for most of the week. Matchups against Belle Plaine and New Ulm that were respectively scheduled for Tuesday, May 20, and Thursday, May 22, have been canceled altogether. The Hubmen hope they can start games for the week at home against St. Peter at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, with the weather potentially necessitating a move to Gustavus Adolphus College for that game. On Thursday the 22nd, the Hubmen will end their regular season with a rematch against Mound Westonka that was initially scheduled for Monday.
“It can get frustrating at times for sure,” Arnold said of the difficult nature of scheduling a spring baseball season in Minnesota. “It didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to, only getting 18 (games), but at the end of the day, the last regular season game for our seniors gets to be at their home ballpark.”
It is that sort of positivity that can carry the Hubmen to the finish line on the regular season, which they hope to do in strong fashion to prepare for a section playoff that they know will start on the road for them.
As the saying goes, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. After an up-and-down start to the season, some strong showings for the Hubmen last week provide optimism that they will finish strongly going into the postseason.