Legion baseball: Alexandria wins two at Grand Rapids tournament

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The Fat Daddy’s Alexandria American Legion baseball team bookended the Grand Rapids Tournament with wins but came up just short of advancing to championship play this past weekend.

Alexandria opened the tournament with a 10-2 win over Hermantown before dropping two games to Edina and Hopkins. Alexandria then used a late-inning comeback to upend West St. Paul to wrap up the weekend with a .500 record.

It was a record head coach Kevin Engebretson said he was proud of after going into the weekend a little shorthanded. Regulars Colin Erickson and Mark Whiting were in St. Cloud to take part in an all-star football game. A couple other minor injuries also had some players playing at less than 100 percent.

“The team once again battled with missing players and nagging injuries,” Engebretson said. “But they fought their way to a couple of wins. Whiting and Erickson are still showcasing their skills on the gridiron. [Parker] Giroux and [Luc] Beireis developed minor injuries over the weekend. The guys really grinded it out. I was extremely proud of the way they finished out the weekend.”

Alexandria 3,

West St. Paul 2

Shawn Krueger capped off a strong weekend by closing out a 3-2 win over West St. Paul that came in dramatic fashion.

Krueger led the way with his bat through most of the weekend. He finished with eight hits, four of them extra base hits, throughout the four games.

“[He] really hit the ball great all weekend and picked us up offensively,” Engebretson said.

In the finale, he preserved a come-from-behind victory by getting the last three outs on the mound. He also led off the top of the seventh with a single to get a rally started for his team.

Alexandria rallied for three in that final inning to erase a two-run deficit. Eric Carlsen followed Krueger’s leadoff hit with a double to put runners on second and third. Chris Curry then delivered a two-run single up the middle for the first hit of his legion career. Curry advanced to second on the throw home. That set up Chris Vogeler, who delivered with another RBI single to give Alexandria lead it would not relinquish.

“This was just an awesome way to close out the weekend,” Engebretson said. “I was so proud of our guys that last game. With all the injuries and other stuff going on, they stayed so positive and just kept on battling. They never gave up and it was especially fun to see our young guys pick us up and get it done. It really showed our guys that no matter who is put on that lineup card, we can win some ball games.”

Hopkins 7,

Alexandria 4

That win came after a disappointing loss to Hopkins in the third game of the tournament.

“We were hitting the ball hard,” Engebretson said. “We just couldn’t find a hole.”

Jordan Hirsch went the distance on the mound for Alexandria. He took some lumps early before setting in. He scattered nine hits and three walks, while striking out two.

Krueger continued to hit the ball hard against Hopkins. He finished with a double and a solo home run, his second home run of the summer.

Edina 12, Alexandria 2

Things did not come any easier against Edina.

Alexandria could not recover after falling behind 6-0 after the first inning. Dalton Leuschke and Krueger had strong games at the plate in the losing effort. Both players finished with three hits, including a double.

Alexandria 10,

Hermantown 2

Those numbers from Leuschke and Krueger were a continuation of the kind of offense they put up in the tournament opener.

Both players led Alexandria to an easy win over Hermantown. Krueger started the tournament with three hits, including a double and two RBI. Leuschke added two hits, two RBI and three runs. Ross Thompson also had a big day with a double and his first career home run to go along with two RBI and three runs scored.

That was plenty of support for starter Nate Nelson. Nelson went all five innings for Alexandria. He allowed just the two runs on six hits and three walks, while striking out one.

Alexandria will return home this weekend for a couple games at Knute Nelson. Hopkins comes to town on Friday night for a 7 p.m. first pitch before Alexandria wraps up its weekend with a 1 p.m. game against Moorhead on Saturday.

GAME STATISTICS

ALEXANDRIA 000 000 3 – 3 8 1

WEST ST. PAUL 000 002 0 – 2 9 1

ALEXANDRIA PITCHING – Eric Carlsen – 5IP, 6H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB, 2SO; Dalton Leuschke – W, 1IP, 2H, 2R, 2ER, 1BB, 1SO; Shawn Krueger – 1IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 0SO

ALEXANDRIA HITTING – Chris Vogeler – 1-4, RBI; Tyler Iverson – 1-4; Leuschke – 2-4, 2B; Ross Thompson – BB; Krueger – 1-3, 1 run; Carlsen – 1-3, 2B, 1 run; Luc Beireis – 1-3; Chris Curry – 1-3, 1 run, 2 RBI

ALEXANDRIA 011 100 1 – 4 6 2

HOPKINS 213 100 X – 7 9 0

ALEXANDRIA PITCHING – Jordan Hirsch – 6IP, 9H, 7R, 6ER, 3BB, 2SO

ALEXANDRIA HITTING – Vogeler – 1-2, 2B, RBI, 2 BB; Iverson – BB; Leuschke – BB, 1 run; Thompson – 1-4; Krueger – 2-4, HR, 2B, 1 run, RBI; Carlsen – 2 BB, 1 run, RBI; Curry – BB; Beireis – 1-4, RBI; Chris Fields – 1-2, 1 run, BB

EDINA 602 31 – 12 11 0

ALEXANDRIA 010 01 – 2 7 2

ALEXANDRIA PITCHING – Curry – 1IP, 4H, 6R, 5ER, 3BB, 1SO; Cody Larson – 4IP, 7H, 6R, 6ER, 6BB, 1SO

ALEXANDRIA HITTING – Vogeler – 1-3, 2B; Iverson – BB; Leuschke – 3-3, 2B, RBI; Krueger – 2-2, 2B, 1 run; Beireis – RBI; Fields – 1-2, 1 run

HERMANTOWN 000 02 – 2 6 2

ALEXANDRIA 530 2X – 10 11 2

ALEXANDRIA PITCHING – Nate Nelson – 5IP, 6H, 2R, 2ER, 3BB, 1SO

ALEXANDRIA HITTING – Vogeler – 1-3, 1 run; Parker Giroux – 1-3, 2B; Leuschke – 2-3, 2B, 2 runs, RBI; Thompson – 2-2, 2B, 3 runs, 2 RBI; Iverson – 1-1, 2 BB, 3 runs; Krueger – 3-3, 2B, 1 run, 2 RBI; Carlsen – BB, RBI; Beireis – 1-2, RBI; Fields – BB, RBI

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