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The Wildcat baseball teams came out on opposite ends of identical 12-2 scores over the past week or so.
 
Big Lake 12, Chisago Lakes 2 (6 innings)
Big Lake took a 6-2 lead into the bottom of the sixth inning and score six more runs to end the game by the ten run rule and beat the Wildcats 12-2 Tuesday, April 26 at Big Lake.  Only seven of the 12 Hornet runs were earned, due to three Wildcat errors.  The four pitchers used by the Wildcats didn’t do themselves any favors, either.  They allowed just eight hits, but walked five and Big Lake proved very efficient at getting their baserunners home.  Henry Trost had three of the Wildcats’ six hits, including a triple, and scored both Wildcat runs.  Joey Ferris and Anders Brown each drove in a run for the Wildcats.
 
Chisago Lakes 12, Duluth Denfeld 2 (5 innings)
The Wildcats broke open a close game with nine runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to win 12-2 by the ten run rule and sent the Duluth Denfeld Hunters on a long ride back to the shores of Lake Superior.  Tyler Stilp pitched all five innings for the Wildcats, and looked good as he allowed two earned runs on six hits, walked two and struck out three.  The game was played last Saturday, April 30 at Pat Collins Field at Chisago Lakes High School.

The Wildcats trailed 1-0 going into the bottom of the fourth inning and proceeded to to put on a baseball clinic.  Joey Ferris hit a slow roller to third.  The third baseman charged and fired to first.  The ball got there about the same time as the speedy Ferris, but the base ump was spared having to make a close call because the first baseman bobbled the ball and Ferris was safe.  Ferris stole second.  Up next, Anders Brown bunted down the third base line.  The ball rolled along the dirt just a few inches inside the baseline.  About halfway to the base, it started to roll towards foul territory and the Hunter third baseman let it go.  But the ball stopped right on the chalk line and Brown was safe at first with a bunt single as Ferris moved up to third.  Brown stole second.  Dusty Rhodes made all the setup work pay off as he ripped a single to right center to score both runners and put the Wildcats up 2-1.  Rhodes later scored when Gabe Taylor doubled to the wall in left.

After the Hunters scored a run in the top of the fifth to pull within one, the Wildcats exploded for nine runs in the bottom of the inning.  Six hits, two walks and a hit batter accounted for six Wildcat runs.  Denfeld didn’t want to waste any more pitchers, so they brought in the first baseman.  He didn’t throw a ball anywhere near the plate in warm-ups and did the same thing to the two batters he faced, walking both on four pitches each to push across two more runs and make the score 11-2.  Denfeld brought in another position player to pitch.  He could fire the ball hard but was also wild.  He struck out Adam Hanson for the second out of the inning.  He got to a 3-0 count on Mitch Barrett before drilling him in the back with a fastball – unintentionally – to push across Troy Biernath with the game-ending run.

Ferris and Brown each had two of the Wildcats’’ ten hits and Brown and Rhodes each drove in two runs.
 
Baseball Banter
The Wildcats (6-5) will head to North Branch this afternoon to take on the Vikings at 4:30 p.m.  The Cheeseheads from Osceola will invade Pat Collins Field tomorrow night for a 7 p.m. start.  Next Tuesday, May 10 the Wildcats will host the Cambridge-Isanti Bluejackets at 4:30 p.m.  And they will stay right at home for a return engagement with North Branch on Wednesday, May 11 at 4:30 p.m.

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