POST 147 LEGION BASEBALL - Post 147 gets the sweep at Antigo tourney

POST 147 LEGION BASEBALL

Medford’s Post 147 Senior Legion baseball team answered a three-run sixthinning rally by Gladstone, Mich. Sunday with a two-run rally of its own in the top of the seventh to secure an exciting 10-8 win and a 3-0 record in the three-day Antigo Mid-Summer Tournament.

The tournament was shortened due to storms on Saturday, but Medford left the event as the only unbeaten squad. Post 147 and Gladstone both were 2-0 as they played in the second of three contests held Sunday at Kretz Park.

Post 147 defeated Norway, Mich. 18-4 on Friday before impressively defeating D.C. Everest 8-2 on Saturday. Medford led Fond du Lac 3-0 in the second inning when the skies opened up late Saturday afternoon, wiping out the rest of the day’s action.

Medford led its Sunday contest 8-3 through just two and a half innings, but the bats went silent in the team’s next three at-bats and Gladstone made its run. Tanner Hraby uncharacteristically hit two batters and walked a third to set up a two-run single by Trent Rutter that made it 8-5 in the fifth.

Tyler Darmogray was hit by a pitch with one out in the bottom of the sixth, moved to second on a groundout and scored on Aeden Creten’s base hit. John Soderman fouled a ball to the leftfield corner, then kept it fair on his next swing, sending the ball over the fence for a game-tying two-run homer.

Medford’s winning rally in the top of the seventh started with an error on a ground ball hit by Nick Steliga. JV Castillo then tripled on a drive to deep rightfield to score the go-ahead run. Castillo then scored on Parker Lissner’s sacrifice fly.

From there, Payton Schreiber closed things out, stranding one runner while picking up the save.

Medford did its early damage in the first and third innings. Castillo drew a walk to start the game, stole second and moved to third on Lissner’s hit. Lissner then stole second and both scored when Hraby dumped a single into rightfield. Braxton Weissmiller singled and, with one out, Schreiber singled in Hraby. Weissmiller scored on Carson Carbaugh’s groundout. Gladstone came right back with three runs off Steliga. Creten hit an RBI double and Austin Pepin hit a two-out, two-run single. Steliga pitched one inning. Hraby took over in the second and got out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam.

In the top of the third, Blake Bargender singled, Schreiber was hit by a pitch and Carbaugh drove in courtesy runner Jack Wojcik with a hit. A double steal scored a run and Max Dietzman walked. A run scored on Steliga’s double play. Castillo walked for the third in three at-bats, stole second and scored on Lissner’s third hit in three at-bats.

Hraby went five innings, allowing four hits and five runs while striking out three, walking four and hitting three. Lissner and Weissmiller both went three for four. Lissner had two RBIs.

Medford 8, Everest 2

In the noon game Saturday, Post 147 built a 7-0 lead through four innings and coasted to its 8-2 win over D.C. Everest.

Castillo homered and got the win, going 4.2 innings, while allowing two hits, two walks and two earned runs. Hayden Strebig covered the last 2.2 innings, giving up just one hit and two walks while striking out one.

The pitchers were aided outstanding defense as Medford’s infield turned double plays in the second, fourth and fifth innings with the last one ending Everest’s lone rally of the game with the bases loaded.

Lissner led the 11-hit attack by going three for four. Castillo, Hraby and Schreiber had two hits apiece with Schreiber homering and knocking in three runs. Schreiber’s two-run double was the big hit in a three-run bottom of the first inning. Lissner and Hraby singled ahead of Weissmiller’s two-run double in the third.

Castillo, who just pulled a couple of would-be home run balls foul on Friday, kept one fair for a two-run shot in the fourth. Schreiber’s solo homer ended the scoring in the fifth.

George Jablonski had two of Everest’s three hits, including an RBI single in the team’s two-run fifth. Jack Dvorak pitched all six innings, allowing 11 hits and five earned runs. He struck out four.

Medford 18, Norway 4

In the tournament opener Friday afternoon, Post 147 scored five runs in the top of the second inning and never looked back in an 18-4 rout of Norway, Mich. About the only thing that didn’t go right was Medford had two chances to end the game early via the 10-run rule, but couldn’t quite do it, though a five-run seventh certainly put the game away.

Medford scored five runs in an inning three times, outhit Norway 20-9 and took advantage of seven errors by the Vikings. Lissner was four for six with a double and five RBIs, Bargender was four for six with a double and two RBIs and Hraby was three for four with three RBIs, a triple and a home run.

Norway scored first, but the lead didn’t last long. Lissner’s two-run single and Hraby’s triple highlighted the five-run second. Hraby’s two-run homer made it 9-2 to start the fifth. Steliga’s RBI single helped make it 12-2 before Norway got a walk and two singles with two outs in the bottom half to extend the game. Bargender’s RBI single in the sixth made it 13-3 but Norway, again, got a run on Cameron Varda’s sacrifice fly in the bottom half to take the contest to the seventh.

There, Lissner smacked a two-run double and Bargender added an RBI double in Medford’s third fiverun inning.

Both teams had pitchers on short leashes hoping to save innings for what was anticipated at the time to be a four-game weekend. Hraby got the start for Medford and went 2.1 innings, allowing three hits, three walks and two runs, one earned. Castillo went 1.2 hitless innings, striking out and walking one. Ryder Kraschnewski got four outs and Nick Steliga got the last five outs.

Schreiber, Carbaugh, Steliga and Evan Wilkins had two hits apiece for Post 147.

Up next

The Senior Legion squad was scheduled to head to Rhinelander Wednesday before finishing its regular season on Monday with a pair of five-inning home games against Rib Lake. That doubleheader starts at 6 p.m.

The Class AA Region 2 tournament is in Merrill this year and features just four teams. The double-elimination tournament starts July 26 with Minocqua facing Rhinelander at 5 p.m. followed by Medford and Merrill at 7:30 p.m.

Medford’s 17U Junior Legion team opens post-season play this weekend at the six-team River Falls regional. The team’s first game is against Chippewa Falls at 10 a.m.

Medford Post 147’s Evan Wilkins pushes a single through the right side of Norway’s defense during the fourth inning of Friday’s 18-4 win over the Vikings. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS

Parker Lissner and Carson Carbaugh greet Tanner Hraby at home plate after Hraby’s home run Friday. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS