Photo by Charlie Jacobson: The Marshall VFW Orange baseball team poses with its trophy after winning the Marshall Junior Legion tournament.

MILROY — Overcoming the odds as the youngest team in the field, the Marshall VFW Orange 15U baseball team put together an undefeated run at the Marshall Junior Legion Tournament over the weekend. The 15U squad won each of its four matchups against Junior Legion teams, taking down Brandon Valley 5-3, Moorhead Gold 6-3 and Brookings Red 15-8 in group play before downing Watertown 10-6 in the championship game.

Marshall Orange has now won six consecutive games since it fell to New Ulm Junior Legion on June 7, bringing its record to 10-1. Marshall returns to action on Thursday with a road matchup against Jackson at 5 p.m.

GROUP PLAY

Marshall 5, BV Black 3

Early offense proved to be enough for Marshall to stave off Brandon Valley Black in its tournament opener on Friday at Milroy Yankee Field. Orange scored a total of five runs over the first two innings and held off Black from there to cling to a 5-3 win.

Marshall loaded the bases on its first three at-bats of the game when Kellen Drake was hit by a pitch and Bennett Kimman and Magnus Schlenner singled. Max Weedman then singled in the go-ahead run, Nolan Deutz hit a sacrifice fly to score Kimman and Graem Bly singled home Schlenner for a 3-0 lead.

Mauer Leysen earned the win on the mound, striking out nine batters over the first 4 2/3 innings. He limited Brandon Valley to two hits and six walks on the day, giving up just one unearned run in the top of the third.

Weedman threw the remaining 2 1/3 frames to pick up the save. He struck out three batters while allowing a pair of earned runs on two hits and two walks.

Marshall further bolstered its early lead in the second when Drake walked and Schlenner singled. Weedman and Deutz followed up with back-to-back RBI singles, bringing the score to 5-0.

Brandon Valley made a push in the sixth when a double and two walks loaded the bases with one out. A strikeout put two away before a two-run single put the tying run on base, but a ground out ended the rally with Marshall’s lead still intact.

Kimmann, Schlenner and Weedman each logged a pair of hits on the day, while Deutz and Bly also reached base multiple times with a single and a walk each. Weedman and Deutz drove in two runs each as well.

BOX SCORE

BATTING

K. Drake: 0-2, BB, HBP, 2 R, SO; B. Kimman: 2-4, R; M. Schlenner: 2-4, 2 R, SO; M. Weedman: 2-4, 2 RBI, SO; N. Deutz: 2-3, BB, 2 RBI; G. Bly: 1-2, BB, RBI, SO; C. Erickson: 0-2, BB, 2 SO.

PITCHING

M. Leysen: W, 4.2 IP, 2 H, R, 6 BB, 9 SO; M. Weedman: S, 2.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 SO.

Marshall 6, Moorhead Golds 3

Marshall trailed for nearly the entirety of its second group matchup against Moorhead Golds on Friday. Yet, the Orange bats stepped up in the clutch for four runs in the bottom of the sixth to claim a 6-3 win.

Heading into the bottom of the sixth, Marshall faced a 3-2 deficit. Moorhead struck out each of Marshall’s first two batters of the frame, but Kaden Boeck, Matthew Ryks and Drake hit consecutive singles to load the bases. Kimman then singled in the tying run and Schlenner turned the game on its head with a go-ahead three-run double.

Moorhead started the seventh with a series of promising at-bats, drawing three straight walks to load the bases with no outs. Yet, Deutz struck out three straight batters from there to end the game unscathed with Marshall still on top.

Weedman was credited with the win for Marshall, throwing 3 1/3 scoreless innings while limiting Gold to a hit and three walks with six strikeouts. Deutz earned the save with a scoreless final inning, giving up two walks with three strikeouts.

Bly started the game on the mound, surrendering a pair of earned runs on three hits and three walks over 1 2/3 innings of work. Schlenner also threw one inning of relief between Weedman and Deutz, giving up one earned run on four walks.

Moorhead jumped out to an early lead with a pair of second-inning runs, but Marshall fought its way back into the game. A pair of singles by Cale Erickson and Boeck, and Drake getting hit by a pitch, loaded the bases with two outs in the third, and Schlenner reached on an error to drive in Erickson.

Two innings later, Schlenner hit a two-out single and scored the tying run on a Weedman single, though Moorhead responded with a go-ahead run in the top of the sixth.

Schlenner finished the day with a double, a single and three RBIs, and Erickson and Boeck each also contributed a pair of singles.

BOX SCORE

BATTING

K. Drake: 1-3, HBP, R, 2 SO; B. Kimman: 1-4, RBI, R; M. Schlenner: 2-4 (2B), 3 RBI, R; M. Weedman: 1-4, RBI, SO; N. Deutz: 1-3, SO; C. Erickson: 2-3, R, SO; K. Boeck: 2-3, R, SO; M. Ryks: 1-3, R, SO.

PITCHING

G. Bly: 1.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO; M. Weedman: W, 3.1 IP, H, 3 BB, 6 SO; M. Schlenner: IP, R, ER, 4 BB, SO; N. Deutz: S, IP, 2 BB, 3 SO.

Marshall 15, Brookings Red 8

Consistent hitting at the plate led Marshall Orange to a rout of Brookings Junior Legion in its pool-play finale at Yankee Field on Saturday. Marshall scored three or more runs in four of their six turns at bat, running away with a 15-8 win.

Marshall went ahead for good with a three-run bottom-of-the third. Schlenner drew a leadoff walk before scoring on a Weedman single to tie the game at 4-all. A Deutz single and a Boeck walk loaded the bases, and a Leysen sacrifice fly and a Ryks RBI single gave Marshall a 6-4 edge.

Orange gave itself four more runs of insurance in the fourth. Schlenner doubled and scored on a Deutz single with two outs. Boeck reached on an error and Erickson capitalized with a two-run double, and Ryks singled home Erickson for a 10-4 Marshall advantage.

Deutz and Schlenner each reached base four times in the game for Marshall. Deutz logged a double, three singles and three RBIs, while Schlenner finished with two doubles and two walks. Weedman also finished with a double, two singles and three RBIs and Ryks contributed three singles and two RBIs.

Erickson earned the win for Marshall, giving up three earned runs on eight hits and three walks over 4 2/3 innings. Ryks threw the remainder of the game, giving up three earned runs on three hits and a walk.

Brookings scored a pair of first-inning runs. Yet, Marshall took the lead in the second when Ryks reached on an error to drive in Deutz with two outs, and Drake hit a two-run go-ahead single. Still, Brookings answered with two more runs in the third to briefly take the lead before Marshall went ahead for good.

Each team scored a run in the fifth, and Brookings scored three in the sixth to cut the gap to three runs. Yet, Marshall loaded the bases in the bottom of the frame, and a Weedman RBI single, a two-run double from Deutz and a passed ball allowed Marshall to claim its largest lead of the day, 15-8.

BOX SCORE

BATTING

K. Drake: 1-3, BB, HBP, 2 RBI, R; B. Kimman: 1-5, R; M. Schlenner: 2-3 (2 2B), 2 BB, 3 R, SB, SO; M. Weedman: 3-5 (2B), 3 RBI; N. Deutz: 4-5 (2B), 3 RBI, 4 R, SB; K. Boeck: 1-3, 2 BB, 3 R; C. Erickson: 1-3 (2B), RBI, R; G. Bly: 0-1, BB; M. Leysen: 1-4, BB, RBI, SO; M. Ryks: 3-5, 2 RBI, 2 R.

PITCHING

C. Erickson: W, 4.2 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 SO; M. Ryks: 2.1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, BB, 3 SO.

CHAMPIONSHIP

Marshall 10, Watertown 6

After finishing pool play undefeated, Marshall Orange migrated from Milroy to Legion Field in Marshall for the championship game. Orange’s momentum carried across locations as they found their rhythm in the middle of the game to claim a 10-6 win in the championship round.

Marshall trailed 4-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth when its bats snapped into action. Bly singled and Ryks reached on an error to put the tying run on base, and Kimman added another single to load the bases with one out.

Schlenner took advantage of the situation with a two-run single to tie the game. After a walk to Weedman reloaded the bases, Leysen hit a two-run single with two outs to give Marshall a 6-4 edge.

Deutz earned the win on the mound, holding Watertown to three earned and three unearned runs over 5 2/3 innings of work. He struck out four batters while giving up eight hits and four walks.

Schlenner finished off the game with the save, holding Watertown scoreless with one hits and two walks over 1 1/3 frames. He struck out four of the seven batters he faced.

Watertown scored on a bases-loaded walk with two outs in the top of the first, but Drake and Schlenner walked for Marshall and Deutz hit a two-run single in the bottom of the frame. Still, Watertown tied the game back up with a run in the second and took the lead with two more in the third.

Marshall padded its lead with three runs in the fifth inning. Ryks got the rally started with a leadoff double, and after Drake walked, Kimman reached base when Watertown committed an error on his bunt, allowing two runs to score. Weedman also hit a sacrifice fly to score Kimman for a 9-4 lead.

Schlenner and Deutz each finished the game with a single, a walk and two RBIs. Bly also singled twice and Leysen drove in two runs with a single.

Watertown attempted to rally in the top of the sixth, tacking on two runs to cut Marshall’s lead to 8-6. Yet, Marshall got a run back in the sixth.

With two Watertown runners on base and no outs in the seventh, Schlenner struck out three consecutive batters to get out of the jam and secure the win.

BOX SCORE

BATTING

K. Drake: 0-1, 3 BB, HBP, R; B. Kimman: 1-5, 3 R; M. Schlenner: 1-3, BB, 2 RBI, 2 R, SO; M. Weedman: 0-1, BB, HBP, RBI; N. Deutz: 1-3, BB, 2 RBI, SO; M. Leysen: 1-4, 2 RBI, SO; K. Boeck: 0-2, BB, HBP; G. Bly: 2-4, 2 R, SO; M. Ryks: 1-3 (2B), BB, 2 R.

PITCHING

N. Deutz: W, 5.2 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 4 SO; M. Schlenner: S, 1.1 IP, H, 2 BB, 3 SO.