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Pitching key as Ely wins three-of-four in townball ballpark tour
In four games, Ely’s American Legion baseball team held opposing teams to single digits in hits.
That’s collectively, as in nine total hits allowed over the course of a four-game stretch in southern Minnesota.
As a result, Ely won three-of-four contests in its annual swing south, which wrapped up Saturday at Jack Ruhr Stadium in Miesville.
The ballpark in the middle of a rural Minnesota farmfield was the home of head coach Tom Coombe’s 600th career victory - as Ely downed Miesville 9-2.
Senior-to-be Caid Chittum came on in relief with one out on the first inning and retired the first 16 batters he faced. He finished with a one-hitter and nine strikeouts as Post 248 capped off a successful weekend, Ely also downed Montgomery 11-1 and 11-3 in a June 27 doubleheader, and suffered a 5-4 loss to Le-Sueur, a high school Class AA state tournament participant, the following day.
Overall, Ely pitchers gave up just nine hits for the weekend and the dominance on the mound continued Monday, as Hunter Halbakken tossed a three-hitter with 11 strikeouts en route to an 8-0 home triumph against Cook County.
Ely entered a holiday break with a record of 11-3 and heads into the home stretch of the regular season, including this week’s Ely Echo Midsummer Classic, with both momentum and high hopes.
“We’re playing well right now and it all starts on the mound,” said Coombe. “It seems like we are getting a good performance on the mound every time out and our defense has been superb as well. We don’t hit with a lot of power but we are doing the little things that win baseball games.”
Lefthander Louie Panichi won for the second time in as many starts in the southern trip opener at Montgomery.
He recorded six strikeouts but lost his bid for a no-hitter with two outs in the sixth inning.
Halbakken and Leeson combined to hold Montomgery to four hits in the nightcap.
At the plate, Ely was led by Erron Anderson, who crushed a two-run home run in the opening game.
Deegan Richards contributed a two-run double and Chittum also doubled in a run.
The second game win was fueled by numerous free passes issued by Montgomery pitchers.
Brecken Sandberg held LeSueur in check for six innings, but the hosts scored twice on wild pitches late in the game to erase a 4-2 deficit.
Panichi was three-for-four at the plate with a two-run single, and Anderson singled in a run.
Ely, however, stranded runners in scoring position in the top of the seventh and LeSueur won it with a two out double in the bottom half of the frame.
Chittum slammed the door on Miesville after the hosts scored twice in the first with the help of four walks.
In addition to shutting the hosts down, Chittum had a two-run single in the third and a run-scoring hit in the fourth.
Sandberg and Panichi drove in runs as part of a three-run fifth to put things away.
• Post 248 returned to action with Monday’s home win.
Ely scored twice in the fifth inning and added five more runs in the sixth - two on a single by Owen Marolt.
Halbakken fired the complete-game shutout to pick up his fourth win of the season, and both Levens and Chittum finished with two hits.
