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District Tournament

Round One-

Coon Rapids 11

Chisago Lakes 2

The Wildcats knew that the district tourney would bring some of the best teams around. After their first round match-up with Coon Rapids last Wednesday, the ‘Cats were reminded of that. Coon Rapids, the number four seed out of the North Hennepin, used a quick and powerful attack to jump on Chisago early and often, building a 9-0 lead, leading to an 11-2 win.

Coon Rapids scored nine runs in the first three innings before rain postponed the game for an hour and a half. When the two teams returned to the field, it appeared that the Thunder had woken the Wildcats up as the ‘Cats began to work their way back into the game. However, the nine run deficit was too much to overcome.

Kyle Collins got two back in the bottom of the sixth inning with a two-run home run, trimming the deficit to 9-2. Unfortunately for Chisago, Coon Rapids battled back with two of their own in the seventh, building an 11-2 lead. The teams went scoreless the rest of the way.

“They (Coon Rapids) were really good,” mentioned Trent Grams, Chisago Lakes American Legion head coach. “They were comprised of high school seniors and college freshman, so they had a lot more experience than we did. They hit the ball really well.”

The best Chisago has faced all season?

“By far, by far,” explained Grams. “They were phenomenal.”

Despite a slow start, Chisago starter Zander Mueller was phenomenal as well towards the end of the game, working eight innings before Karl Lee came in to pitch the ninth. Like the entire team, Mueller saved his best for the last half of the game.

“He was getting confidence as the game got longer,” commented Grams. “It was nice to see him hit his spots. He threw well and kept them off balance a little bit.”

The loss brought the Wildcats one game away from elimination.

District Tournament

Round Two-

Chisago Lakes 12

Dassel-Cokato 7

After falling to Coon Rapids last Wednesday, later that night, and into Thursday morning, the Wildcats were able to fight off elimination against Dassel-Cokato, cruising to a 12-7 win.

The scoring was balanced and precise. Batting in the bottom of the first, Chisago got on the board after Thomas Moody was hit by a pitch, forcing the runner in from third.

After Dassel-Cokato came back to score the next two runs, the Wildcats got back to their scoring ways, striking for two in the third, fourth and fifth.

Batting in the bottom of the third, Mark Unger and Kyle Collins scored on a Derrick Olson two-run double. Then in the fourth, two more runs came across on a Danny Reed two-run home run. The blast pushed the Wildcat lead to 5-2.

Far from over, Reed and Levi Jones each added RBI singles in the fifth, running their lead to 7-2. Chisago then finished the win off by scoring five more runs, one in the sixth and four in the seventh. Karl Lee highlighted the extra flurry with a solo home run in the seventh. Reed also picked up two more RBI’s on a single. The four runs in the seventh came on Thursday morning after the game was postponed Wednesday night due to the weather.

Despite three runs by Dassel-Cokato in the ninth, the Wildcats stayed alive with a 12-7 win, moving to the third round of the district tournament.

“The kids, I think they were geared up after that Coon Rapids game because they saw that they can play with them,” remarked Grams. “Dassel was more of a team like us, they played almost all juniors and seniors. It was a good game for us, especially on offense. We showed that we belong.”

On offense, the Wildcats banged out a season-high 18 hits. Individually, Reed finished the game 4-5 with 4 RBI’s, and Lee added a solo home run.

“To have 18 hits at the district tournament is great,” replied Grams. “You’re going to win a lot of games if you can do that.”

Meanwhile, on the mound, Olson got the win after working the first seven innings. Lee pitched the eighth and ninth.

District Tournament

Round Three-

Chisago Lakes 8

Cambridge 0

The Wildcats third round match-up against Cambridge last Thursday meant two things:

First, with the win over Dassel-Cokato, advancing Chisago to the third round, the ‘Cats matched the farthest they have ever advanced in districts.

Second, with two games already in the books, the Wildcats opponent, Cambridge, had already used their two best pitchers, giving the ‘Cats the opening they needed to register another win.

Chisago got going in the first with two runs, both coming on a two-run double by Thomas Moody. Then in the fourth, the Wildcats added three more to push their lead to 5-0. Two of the three runs came on RBI singles by Mark Unger and Kyle Collins while the third was knocked in by Moody on another double.

While the bats were doing their thing, on the mound, Karl Lee was sensational, going the distance for a complete game win.

Already leading 5-0, Chisago threw the final punch in the sixth with three more runs to complete the 8-0 win. All three runs came on RBI singles by Lee, Olson and Zander Mueller.

“It was one of the best games we have played all year,” said Grams. “That’s the right time to play a good game, it allows you to move on.”

The win allowed the ‘Cats to do just that, moving to the fourth round, the deepest they have ever gone in the district tournament.

Individually, Moody paced the Wildcats with three RBI’s while Olson, Collins, Unger, Lee and Mueller each had one.

“Moody was pretty happy. We got a spark from him. He was struggling a little bit in the first two games so it was nice to see him contribute,” remarked Grams. “Also, Karl (Lee) did a great job on the mound and our defense made all the plays. It was a good game.”

District Tournament

Round Four-

Osseo 10

Chisago Lakes 5

When asked whether or not fatigue was an issue in game four, Grams didn’t mix words, “I don’t think it would’ve mattered. They were pretty good.”

“They” were Osseo, the number two seed out of the North Hennepin. The end result was a 10-5 Chisago loss, eliminating them from the tournament, ending their season at 14-9 overall.

As if things weren’t tough enough for Chisago, playing with only nine players, Osseo jumped all over the ‘Cats early, building a 6-0 lead after two innings.

The Wildcats cut into that deficit in the top of the third with three runs of their own, two coming on a two-run home run by Danny Reed while the other was knocked in by Karl Lee on an RBI single.

However, Osseo added two more runs in the bottom of the third, then finished the game with two more in the fifth, completing a 10-5 win.

Chisago managed one run in the fifth and seventh to keep it close, but not close enough.

“We ran out of pitching, but the kids were still able to put some runs together which was nice,” explained Grams. “Their fourth starter was throwing 82-83 miles per hour consistently, and Levi Jones finished the game pitching for us. We were hurting.”

Despite the loss, Grams and the Wildcats returned home with a sense of accomplishment after their successful run in districts, especially considering that Chisago did it all with seven juniors and two seniors.

“The goal for Chisago is always to make it to the district tournament. We played four games when I wasn’t even sure we would be able to win one,” remarked Grams. “You really hate to end the season on a loss, but I started seven juniors and two seniors. The guys got a really good taste of what it’s like to compete at that level.

“It was also fun to see our two seniors (Danny Reed and Thomas Moody) play this summer,” continued Grams. “They did a great job all year helping out the younger guys. They were great role models for the guys to look up to.”

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