Photo by Ari Selvey: Marshall Legion’s Josh Kraft readies to celebrate with his teammates after hitting a home run during the first game of a legion baseball doubleheader against New Ulm Thursday at Mueller Park in New Ulm.

By Jake McNeill

jmcneill@marshallindependent.com

NEW ULM — Dominant pitching performances from Owen Kesteloot and Liam Kruse helped the Marshall Mudcats open their American Legion doubleheader against New Ulm on Thursday with a win. Josh Kraft stepped up at the plate with a home run and a triple in the 6-1 victory. Yet, Marshall’s pitching faltered in game 2, and the Mudcats were walked off in nine innings on an error, 8-7.

Kraft led Marshall with eight total bases on the day while Andrew Stelter logged four singles, three stolen bases and a pair of RBIs.

Kesteloot earned the win in game 1 with three scoreless relief innings, taking over after Kruse gave up one earned run over four frames.

In game 2, Stelter was tagged with the loss after giving up two earned runs over four innings of relief. Kraft gave up one earned run in his two-inning start while Logan Phillippe gave up another pair of earned runs over two frames of relief.

Marshall now sits at 11-9 on the season as it prepares to head into the Sub-State 2 tournament next week. The Mudcats enter as the No. 2 seed and will take on No. 7 Worthington in the first round at Mueller Field in New Ulm on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.

Marshall 6, New Ulm 1

Josh Kraft led Marshall to victory at the plate in the first game of the Mudcats’ doubleheader against New Ulm Gold, finishing with a home run and a triple as Marshall claimed a 6-1 victory.

New Ulm led by a run through four innings before Marshall got on the board with two outs in the fifth. Shep Jensen walked and Leyton Wherry singled to put Jensen in scoring position. After Stelter advanced to third on a passed ball, Andrew Stelter hit a hard ground ball that found its way into left field for a single, scoring Jensen for the tying run.

The momentum carried into the sixth inning, when Kraft tripled before scoring the go-ahead run on a Levi Maeyaert single.

Marshall’s four-run inning continued when Liam Kruse singled and, after New Ulm retired consecutive batters with strikeouts, Jensen hit an RBI single to extend the Marshall lead to two runs. Kruse then scored on a balk and Jensen scored on a wild pitch to make the score 5-1.

Owen Kesteloot earned the win with three scoreless innings of relief for Marshall. He struck out two batters in the outing, and the only baserunners he allowed were a pair of singles and a hit batter.

Kruse left the game with a no-decision after pitching the first four innings for Marshall, giving up one earned run on three hits. He struck out five batters without walking one.

Stelter also logged a pair of singles for Marshall while Jensen reached base three times on a single and two walks.

Kraft led off the top of the seventh with a home run to left field on a 2-2 count, bringing Marshall’s lead to 6-1.

New Ulm scored the game’s first run in the bottom of the fourth when Colin Anderson singled, stole second, advanced to third on an error and scored on an Elliot Schabert ground out.

Anderson was charged with the loss for New Ulm after giving up five earned runs and one unearned run on nine hits and a trio of walks over six innings. He also was the lone New Ulm batter with multiple hits, singling twice to account for two of his team’s five hits.

Blaine Olsen closed out the game with three outs and no hits or runs allowed.

BOX SCORE

MARSHALL

C. Anderson: L, 6 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 5 SO; B. Olsen: IP, BB, SO.

GAME 2 (9 inn.)

New Ulm 8, Marshall 7

The Mudcats’ seven runs on eight hits weren’t enough to complete the sweep in the second game of Thursday’s doubleheader against New Ulm Gold, with Marshall committing its third error of the game in the bottom of the ninth to give New Ulm the 8-7 win.

Facing a 1-1 count, Schabert fouled off three consecutive pitches before drawing an eight-pitch walk to put the winning run on first. Albrecht laid down a bunt, but a throwing error by Stelter allowed Schabert to advance to third and another error by Kruse after recovering the ball allowed Schabert to run home to win the game.

Marshall led 7-5 heading into the bottom of the sixth, but New Ulm got a pair of singles and a walk to load the bases with one out. A second walk forced in one run, and a wild pitch with two outs allowed New Ulm to score the tying run that eventually forced extra innings.

Stelter pitched the game’s final four innings in relief for Marshall, allowing two earned runs on three hits and five walks with five strikeouts. At the plate, he led the Mudcats in the game with two singles, a walk, a hit-by-pitch, three stolen bases and an RBI in three at-bats. Kesteloot also drove in a pair of runs on a single and a walk.

Marshall’s offense kicked into gear in the top of the third. Facing a 2-1 deficit, Stelter singled and scored on another single by Eli Weedman to tie the game.

With one out, Maeyaert singled and was replaced on first by courtesy runner Shep Jensen. Kruse then singled in Weedman and, after a JR Vierstraete single loaded the bases, Kesteloot hit a two-run single to give Marshall a 5-2 lead.

Kraft singled in Stelter in the top of the first after Stelter reached base on a walk, but New Ulm claimed the lead in the second by putting two runners on with walks and scoring them on a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly.

Stelter singled and scored on a dropped third strike in the fourth inning, and was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to drive in Vierstraete in the fifth. Yet, New Ulm plated two runs on a Marshall error in the fourth and added another run on a bases-loaded walk with two outs in the sixth to stay within striking distance, trimming Marshall’s lead to 7-5.

Caleb Forstner picked up the win on the mound for New Ulm with 4 1/3 innings of scoreless, hitless relief. Hubbard led Gold at the plate with two singles and a double.

BOX SCORE

MARSHALL

J. Finstad: 4 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 5 ER, BB, 5 SO; B. Olsen: 0.2 IP, R, ER, 4 BB, SO; C. Forstner: W, 4.1 IP, BB, 3 SO.