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The North Branch baseball team got three runs in the third inning, and it held up against the 10-5 St. Francis Saints on Friday, May 9.

The Saints put two runs across the plate in the sixth inning, but that was all they could muster as the Vikings held on for the win.

Jackson Puelston had the lone RBI for North Branch, as two of their runs were unearned, but they hit the ball hard enough to make St. Francis commit the errors.

Bo Pederson ended the day with two hits, and Puelston, Jacob Robillard and Dayne Meyer had hits for the Vikes. Puelston, Pederson and Lucas Goggin scored the runs, with Goggin coming all the way home after being hit by a pitch.

Zimmerman 12, North Branch 7

Before the nice win over St. Francis, though, the Vikings dropped their 12th game of the year, this one a 12-7 loss to Zimmerman on thursday May 8.

Puelston again had a nice game, going 2-for-4 with a double and two runs, Pederson went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run, and Brendan Donahue also went 2-for-4 with a run. Meyer pushed home two RBIs and Robillard had one for the Vikes.

Puelston started for the Vikes and went four and one-third innings, giving up six hits, six walks and five runs, but with Zimmerman up 5-2 in the fifth inning, Pederson gave up seven runs over the next inning, and despite NB putting up five runs in the bottom of the sixth to fight off the mercy rule, they still fell 12-7.

The Vikings hosted section foe Hermantown earlier this week and then travel to Monticello on Friday, May 16 for a M8C match up. They’ll close their season with a Tuesday, May 20 game against Duluth Denfeld at home.

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