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AMATEUR BASEBALL: Milroy Yankees use strong hitting to beat Tracy, 17-3

Photo by Joshua Guetter Milroy’s Dylan Criquet-Danielson follows through on a swing during their game against Tracy on Wednesday. The Yankees defeated the Express 17-3 in seven innings.

MILROY – With the second half of the amateur baseball season underway, the Milroy Yankees took on the Tracy Express Wednesday night at Yankee Field. The game featured two teams seemingly going in opposite directions this season. The Yankees shutout Granite Falls on Sunday and continued to climb above .500. Meanwhile, the Express have struggled to score runs all season on their way to a losing first half record. These trends continued as Milroy took care of business Wednesday night, scoring 12 runs in the final two innings on their way to a 17-3 victory.

The game lasted seven innings, but the start of the game was a close affair. It was the Express that struck first off of Yankee starting pitcher Aaron Mathiowetz. Tracy’s Shane Erickson connected on a two-run homer over the left field wall to give the team an early lead. Erickson would finish 3-3 in the game.

The Express continued their aggressive approach in the second inning, on their way to another run. Derek Radke led off with a walk and eventually stole second. After Travis Apperson singled to put runners at the corners, Brian Fultz drove in Tracy’s third run with a sacrifice fly. “They jumped out on us a little bit,” Milroy coach Ryan Rohlik said after the game. “That’s been kind of our Achilles heel all year is slow starts. We were behind early, it’s good for us to respond.”

Down three runs, the Yankees responded almost immediately. In the bottom of the second, Nolan Schaeffer and Dylan Criquet-Danielson delivered back-to-back doubles on a couple hard hit balls. Derek Rasmussen’s infield single put Milroy on the scoreboard, but they weren’t finished. After a hit-by-pitch, Andrew Mathiowetz drew a bases loaded walk, and Austin Kretsch responded with a sacrifice fly. The Yankees got another sacrifice fly off the bat of Andy Schmidt in the inning, their fourth run of the inning. In a dramatic turn, Milroy had taken the lead.

It was a lead they wouldn’t relinquish, as Mathiowetz settled down on the mound. Erickson and Mason Campion both singled in the third inning, but the Express were held scoreless. Mathiowetz held the bats at bay over the next three innings, on his way to a win. The Yankees starter earned a quality start, going six innings, and giving up three runs along with three strikeouts.

Tracy starter Mason Campion held his own through the first four innings, but he got into trouble in the fifth. Milroy collected five hits in the frame, including doubles from Matt Bauer and Rasmussen. Rasmussen’s hit scored two, while Eric Dolan and Darrick Allpress also added run-scoring hits in the inning. Milroy scored five total runs to break the game wide open at 10-3.

If big hits were the theme of the fifth inning, patience was the theme of the sixth inning for Milroy. The Yankees loaded the bases with one out, and Campion was replaced on the mound by Tanner Deming-Phelps. Deming-Phelps struggled to throw strikes. At one point, five straight Yankees reached base via either a walk or hit-by-pitch. As Milroy walked their way around the bases, the score reached the ten-run limit. By the end of the sixth, Milroy led 17-3, with all of their runs unanswered. Tracy would need a big inning of their own in the seventh to extend the game. The Yankees brought in Dolan to close it out. Brian and James Fultz managed to reach base, but neither came around to score, and Milroy enjoyed their second straight second-half victory.

The Yankees appear to be heading in the right direction, but they will be challenged over the next couple weeks by quality opponents. “This is a big weekend for us,” said Coach Rohlik. “We’re playing a rival in Marshall on Friday. Next week we have the two dogs in Raymond and Bird Island.” With their record now at 14-10, Milroy is in a good position as the playoffs get closer. “We’re vying for that 1 or 2 seed going into regions,” Coach Rohlik said. “We haven’t hit that streak, maybe that’s a good thing, because last year, maybe we peaked too early. So we’re kind of hoping that these next two weeks can catapult us into some good momentum come regions.” Tracy will look to rebound on Saturday, as Heron Lake comes to town.

Milroy Yankees 17, Tracy Express 3

Tracy 210 000 0 — 3 7 5

Milroy 041 057 — 17 12 0

HITTING: Tracy (Erickson 3-3, HR, 2 RBI; James Fultz 1-3, 1 R); Milroy (Allpress 3-5, 2 RBI; Rasmussen 2-4, 2B, 4 RBI; Dolan 3-3, 3 R, RBI).

PITCHING (IP-H-R-ER-BB-SO): Tracy (Campion 5.33-12-10-9-5-1;Deming-Phelps .33-0-5-3-5-0; J. Fultz .33-0-0-0-0-0); Milroy (Aaron Mathiowetz 6-7-3-3-1-3; Dolan 1-0-0-0-1-)

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