Twins, Lakers in roller-coaster tourney game

by Matt Baldwin For Hungry Horse News
| July 13, 2011 7:35 AM

After nearly four hours of back-and-forth baseball, the Kalispell Lakers stole another game from the Glacier Twins at home during the July 6 Sapa-Johnsrud Memorial tournament.

Michael O'Connell put the Lakers in control just before midnight with a solo homer that made the final score 10-15.

The Twins used a strong offensive performance through seven innings to build a lead, but pitching woes in the wee hours let the Lakers slip back into the conference game.

The Twins jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the opening frame after a Geoff Streeter RBI and a Chris King two-run homer.

Kalispell equalized in the top of the second, but Kyler Blades crushed an RBI single to left in the bottom half to make the score 5-4.

In a key defensive stop in the third, Devyn Rocker knocked down a grounder and tossed it to Blades at second, who then hit Cody Hill at first for an inning-ending double play.

Kalispell took the lead in the fifth off of a two-run dinger from O'Connell. The Twins took the lead back in the seventh when Jack Cronin connected for an RBI triple to make it 10-9.

Mistakes plagued the Twins in the eighth, as Kalispell scored runs on a wild pitch, a walk with the bases loaded and a fielding error.

Five hitters had two hits for the Twins, including Jeremy Nielsen (2-for-4), Cronin (2-for-5), Blades (2-for-4), Streeter (2-for-5) and King (2-for-3).

Kalispell won both games against the Twins at Memorial Park this season. The Twins topped the Lakers in Kalispell on June 2.

The Twins earned a win at their home tourney July 8 with a 3-2 win over Apple Valley. Talsma drove in Cody Elek with an RBI single to center in the third inning to help the Twins get the victory. Rocker scored the win on the mound.

Twins coach Lindsay Fansler said his team played some good baseball in the tournament, despite missing out on a chance to play for first place.

"We're happy with our level of play," he said. "There are a lot of quality teams in this tournament."

The Twins finished in third place at the tourney last season. Now 3-9 in league play, they host Lethbridge on Friday, July 15, in a conference doubleheader.