Hadley came into the 3rd place series for the Region 13C’s final state tournament spot as a heavy underdog against the Windom Pirates. Not much was expected of Hadley after their previous playoff series play, but Hadley has had the Pirates’ number over the last 3 years; having eliminating Windom out of the play-offs, so it was expected that this series would be a hardfought battle with Windom looking for a measure of revenge. Anyone that attended this series can attest to the grittiness and pride of the underdog Buttermakers showed in the series. Unfortunately for Hadley their run of consecutive State tourney appearances would end at 6 as the Pirates held off the Buttermakers in an exciting series. Here is the series recap:
Wednesday in Windom
WINDOM 7 HADLEY 5
With the last chance to snag the Region 13C 3rd seed to the State Baseball Tournament, Hadley needed to take down the #2 seed Windom Pirates. The Windom Pirates are loaded with quality pitching options like Hadley’s previous opponent, Luverne Redbirds. If the Buttermakers were to take down the Pirates, Hadley would need to play near perfect baseball and wake up the bats after being silenced by Luverne. Jacob Van Dam was given the start to try to steal away a Game 1 victory.
It looked like Hadley was prepared for the task in the 1st inning. Joe Larson returned to the starting line-up after suffering a back injury in the last series. Joe would lead off with a double to get things going. Nick Bruning then would reach on a Windom fielding error when the throw from Pirate pitcher would be thrown wide of the bag allowing Joe to come around to score. Hot hitting Max Zwart would be up next. The Windom starting pitcher would get Max to strike out. Danny Blankenship would come to bat and hit a double to put Buttermakers on 2nd and 3rd base with only 1 out. It looked very positive for Hadley to go up big, but Hadley would waste the opportunity as Bruning, and Blankenship would be left on base. Jacob Van Dam would put the Pirates down 1-2-3 with Hadley up 1-0 after 1 inning.
In the 3rd, Hadley would strike again. Joe Larson would lead off by walking and move to 2nd on a passed ball. Nick Bruning would single to score Joe. The Windom pitcher would once again get Max Zwart to strike out. The Windom manager decided to award 1st base to Danny Blankenship on an intentional walk to set up a double play. Kellan Johnson would step up and ruin the Pirate’s plan as he would double to score Bruning. Justin Benda would ground out, but the 1st baseman would drop the throw to load the bases with Buttermakers. Abe Paulzine would come up and hit a single down the 3rd base line to score 2 more Buttermakers. Trent Carlson would fly out for the 2nd out. Windom would escape any more damage after picking off Abe Paulzine off 1st base for the 3rd out and Hadley up 5-0. Windom would get a run in the bottom of the inning. The Pirate leadoff batter would hit a triple. Joe Larson would get the relay throw in from the outfield and attempt to get the runner out as he slid into 3rd. Joe’s throw would hit the runner in the helmet as the ball and rolled toward the fence as the runner got up and raced home with Hadley on top 5-1.
In the 4th, Hadley would threaten to get back the run. Jaden Deacon would hit a swinging bunt. The pitcher would pick up the ball, but his throw would be wide of 1st base allowing Jaden to move to 2nd. Joe Larson would fly out. Nick Bruning would hit deep fly ball to right field allowing Jaden to move to 3rd base. However, Windom would appeal the play and Jaden would be called out for leaving the base too early for the 3rd final out. Windom would put a runner on 2nd base in their at bat, but Jacob Van Dam would leave him stranded.
Windom would cut into Hadley’s lead in the 5th. Jacob Van Dam would walk the leadoff batter. Nick Bruning would catch a foul ball as he crashed into front of the Buttermaker dugout fence for the 1st out. Windom would get a single to put runners on the corners. Another single would score a run. A Pirate ground out would once again put Pirates runners at the corners. The next Pirate batter hit a shallow fly ball that would fall in just beyond Joe Larson and Nick Bruning and in front of Jaden Deacon in left for a double as 2 more Pirates scored to cut Hadley’s lead to 5-4.
Windom would tie the game in the 6th. Windom would get a leadoff single. The runner would attempt to steal 2nd base. In a close play, the umpire would call the runner safe as the Buttermakers disputed the call. The runner, thinking he was out, began to walk off towards 3rd base. Hadley would get him in a rundown. Danny Blankenship would run him towards 3rd base. Danny’s throw to Nick Bruning at 3rd would be on time but the ball would be dropped on the tag. The Pirates would get a single to tie the game.
The game would move to the 8th tied. Hadley would get a walk and a bunt single to put 2 runners on base with 1 out. The Pirate reliever would get out of the inning without Hadley scoring. In the Pirates at bat, Jacob Van Dam would give up a lead-off single. Manager Myron Bennett would make a pitching change. Luke Drooger would come in to shut down the Pirate scoring threat. The next batter would hit a comebacker to the mound. Luke Drooger would get the ball and attempt to turn a double play. Luke’s throw to Joe Larson at 2nd base. would be low. Joe would fall on the bag but was unable to make a throw to 1st base for a double play. Luke would hit the next batter. The tension in the park amped up. The next Windom batter would fly out to Nick Bruning for the 2nd out. It looked like Hadley might escape any Windom scoring, but the next batter would hit a fly ball that would land beyond Jaden Deacon’s reach in left as 2 Pirate runners scored taking a 7-5 lead.
In the 9th inning, Alex Petersen would come up to pinch hit and work out a walk. Windom would bring in their ace pitcher to stop the Buttermakers. Alex would advance to 2nd on a wild pitch. Joe Larson would strike out for the 1st out. Nick Bruning would come up to bat. On a 2-2 count, Nick would send a fly ball to the deepest part of the park. The left fielder would track down the ball at the fence. Max Zwart would walk to put the tying run on base bringing Danny Blankenship to the plate. Danny would hit a ground ball to the shortstop that would scoop up the ball and step on 2nd base before Max could slide in for the final out and giving the Pirates the 7-5 come-from-behind victory.
Jacob Van Dam would be charged with the loss. For Hadley, Joe Larson, Nick Bruning, Danny Blankenship, Kellan Johnson, Justin Benda, Abe Paulzine and Jaden Deacon would pick up 1 hit each. Abe Paulzine would get credit for 2 rbis with Nick Bruning and Kellan Johnson each getting credit for 1 rbi.
Final Box Score
R H E
Hadley 5 7 2
Windom 7 8 4
Saturday Game 2
HADLEY 6 WINDOM 5
11 INNINGS
With their backs against the wall for the third week in a row, Hadley was hoping for a better turnout in front of a huge home crowd to force a Game 3. For the 269 in attendance, they saw themselves an UNBELIEVABLE game as the Buttermakers came from behind in extra innings to force a Game 3. Here is the game recap:
Jackson Bull draftee, Gavin Jacobsen was given the starting assignment to slow down the Pirate attack as he faced the Pirate ace, Collin Lovell. Both starters would hold each offense at bay through 4 innings. Windom would put runners on base and in scoring position in 3 of the first 4 innings. Gavin would strand a Pirate runner on 3rd in the 1st and 2nd innings and a runner on 2nd in the 4th and only allowed the Pirates 2 hits. Lovell would hold the Buttermakers hitless through 4 innings.
Windom would be first to score in the 5th inning as Gavin Jacobsen would have control problems. Gavin would walk 4 runners in the inning and hit a batter to allow Windom to score 2 runs. Max Zwart would be brought in to relieve Gavin and get the final out with the bases loaded with Pirate runners. In Hadley’s at, bat, Abe Paulzine would be the first to get a hit off Lovell. Alex Petersen would walk to put two Buttermakers on base with a chance to put a run on the board. Joe Larson would ground out to end the potential scoring opportunity.
Max would shut down the Pirates in order in the 6th. Nick Bruning would lead-off the Buttermakers at bat in the 6th and would take a pitch to his liking and send it over the left field fence for a solo home run to close the game to 2-1. Danny Blankenship would single, and Justin Benda would walk to put 2 runners on base. Carter Benda would come in and pinch run for Blankenship. Carter would get picked off 2nd base to end any chance for Hadley to tie or take the lead.
In the 7th, Windom would put a runner on 2nd on a hit batter. The runner would move up a base on a passed ball. Max Zwart would leave the runner stranded there as he would coax 2 fly outs and a ground out to get out of the inning. Hadley would tie the game in the bottom of the inning. Following an Abe Paulzine strike out, Trent Carlson would single. Mitch Magnus would enter to pinch runner. Alex Petersen would hit a sinking fly ball to center field that the Pirate center fielder would come in to catch before it hit the ground. Mitch Magnus would almost be at 2nd base and had to scoot back to 1st base. The Pirate centerfielder would throw to 1st to get Mitch out. The throw would arrive before Mitch, but the 1st baseman would drop the ball as Mitch got back to the bag safely. Joe Larson then would hit a line drive to right that the Pirate right fielder would come up short as the ball would get by him and roll the fence as Magnus crossed the plate and Joe slid into 3rd base for a triple for a 2-2 tie. The Pirates decided to intentionally walk Nick Bruning instead of letting him to hit to prevent the possibility of the Buttermakers taking the lead. Things worked out in Windom’s favor as Danny Blankenship would ground out to end the inning.
Windom would take back the lead in the 8th. Max would hit the Pirate lead-off batter. A sacrifice bunt would move the runner to 2nd. The Pirate would bring in a pinch-hitter that would hit a ground ball up the middle. 2nd baseman Danny Blankenship would get to the ball and make an awkward throw to 1st base. Danny’s throw would be wide to Nick Bruning at 1st forcing him to dive for the ball. The ball would hit the fence and roll away as the runner would come around to score. The batter would run to 2nd and attempt to advance to 3rd as Nick Bruning struggled to retrieve the ball. Once Nick retrieved the ball, he made an accurate throw to Abe Paulzine at 3rd as Abe applied the tag. Max would get a strike out to end the Pirate at bat.
The lead would be short lived as Hadley would tie the game in the bottom of the inning. Max Zwart would reach base on a Windom fielding error. Max would then move to 2nd on a passed ball. It looked like Windom would get out of the inning after getting Kellan Johnson to strike out and Justin Benda to ground out bringing up Abe Paulzine. Abe would come through again for Hadley as he would hit a single to right field. The right fielder charged the ball and would bobble as he came up to throw in the ball. The bobble allowed Max Zwart to beat the throw at the plate. The throw would get by the catcher to allow Abe Paulzine to move up to 2nd base. Trent Carlson would strike out to end the inning.
In the 9th, Max Zwart would put the Pirates down in order. Windom would make a pitching change. Alex Petersen would work out a walk to start the inning and move to 2nd on a passed ball. Joe Larson would strike out for the first out. Windom once again chose not to pitch to Nick Bruning and intentionally walked him. Once again, this option would pay off for Windom as Danny Blankenship would strike out and Max Zwart would pop out to end the inning, moving the game to extra innings.
In the 10th, Windom would get a 1-out double, but Max would get a strike out and ground out to move to the bottom of the inning. Hadley would go down in order to move to the 11th.
In the 11th the tensions and the nerves in the park were raised. Windom would give a lead-off single to start things off. The next batter would hit a fly ball down the right field line. Kellan Johnson would race to the fence but ran out of room as the ball sailed over the fence putting Windom up 5-3 as the Windom fans roared. Windom would put another runner on 2nd on another hit batter and a stolen base. Max would get a fly ball out that Alex Petersen would catch in front of the left field fence and a strike out to move the game to the bottom of the 11th and one last chance for a Buttermaker rally.
Trent Carlson would lead off and get called out looking on a controversial full count strike out. Alex Petersen then would come through and keep the Buttermakers hopes alive. Alex would send the first pitch he saw over the left field fence to pull Hadley to a 5-4 deficit. Joe Larson would single to keep things going. Windom would make a pitching change. Nick Bruning would come to bat and Windom took the chance to pitch to him. This time Nick would send a harmless fly ball to right for the 2nd out. Was a comeback in the making for the Buttermakers? Danny Blankenship would sneak a single just beyond the Pirate 2nd baseman into center field. bringing Max Zwart to bat. Max would shoot a single to right field. As Joe Larson raced to the plate. Danny Blankenship would take a large turn around 2nd expecting a throw to the plate. However, the throw would be cut off and relayed to 2nd to get Blankenship out to end the game before Joe crossed the plate to tie the game. The throw to the bag was in time but somehow Danny avoided the tag, enraging the Pirate team. After the debate concluded the game continued. Both Blankenship and Zwart would move up a base on a passed ball with Kellan Johnson at the plate. Kellan would work out a walk to load the bases with Justin Benda coming to bat. Justin would work the count to 1-2. The next pitch would get by the catcher and Danny Blankenship raced home before the catcher could make the toss to the plate for an unbelievable, come-from-behind walk-off 6-5 victory sending the series back to Windom for Game 3.
Joe Larson, Danny Blankenship and Abe Paulzine led Hadley in the hitting department with 2 hits each. Nick Bruning, Max Zwart, Trent Carlson and Alex Petersen would each get 1 hit. Joe Larson, Nick Bruning, Max Zwart, Abe Paulzine and Alex Petersen all were credited with 1 rbi. Max Zwart picked up the victory.
Final Box Score
R H E
Hadley 6 10 3
Windom 5 5 5
Sunday Game 3
WINDOM 1 HADLEY 0
A full contingent of Buttermaker fans followed the team to Windom in hopes of watching the Buttermakers secure a 7th straight State Tournament bid. Island Park was packed, with Buttermakers fans making up the majority in attendance. The series had been an exciting, nerve racking one to date and Sunday’s game 3 was no exception. Unfortunately for Hadley, the ending was not in the favor of the Buttermakers as Hadley would fall short in a 1-0 loss. Here is the game recap:
Luke Drooger was given the starting nod to pitch the Buttermakers to a state tourney berth. Both Drooger and the Pirate starting pitcher would limit each team to limited scoring opportunities through the first 7 innings. Hadley would be limited to 4 hits, all singles; by the Pirate starter while Drooger limited Windom to 5 hits., 3 singles and 2 doubles. Hadley would only put a runner on 2nd base once in 7 innings. Windom would put a runner on 2nd base twice and on 3rd base only once. Hadley didn’t help themselves on the base path as they would hit into 4 double plays through 7 innings.
Things changed in the 8th inning for Hadley. In the bottom of the 8th, Windom would get back-to-back singles to start the inning. Manager, Myron Bennett had a meeting on the mound to discuss the situation. Luke Drooger was determined to complete the inning and it was decided to stick with Luke. Luke would get a strike out and fly ball out for the first 2 outs. Luke would then get the next batter to ground to 3rd base. Nick Bruning would come up with the ball and throw over to 1st for the 3rd out. Nick’s throw, however, would be low and bounce in front of Max Zwart who was unable to scoop up the throw as it bounced toward the Pirate dugout as the Pirate runner raced home for the lead. Max Zwart retrieved the ball as the other Pirate runner rounded 3rd base. Max would throw to the 3rd base and a rundown ensued. A play at the plate occurred as the throw came home to Luke Drooger. A collision occurred as Luke applied the tag for the 3rd out. However, Luke was injured in the collision as he was assisted off the field into the dugout.
Hadley had one last shot in the 9th. Nick Bruning would lead-off. Nick would hit a routine ground ball for the 1st out. Danny Blankenship would step up and hit a slow bouncer down the 3rd base line. The Pirate pitcher would retrieve the ball and his throw to 1st base would be late and high as it sailed over the 1st baseman enabling Danny to move to 2nd base. Carter Benda was brought into pinch run. Max Zwart would step up and hit a line drive to the shortstop who would catch the ball and step on 2nd base for the 5th double-play to force out Carter Benda to end the game and the season for Hadley in a heart-breaking loss.
Luke Drooger would be charged with the loss despite giving up only 7 hits and recording 10 strike outs.
Alex Petersen and Danny Blankenship would collect 2 hits with Nick Bruning and Justin Benda picking up 1 hit each. Hadley ended the season with a 21-13 record. Thanks to all the Buttermaker fans for their support and following this season. Hope to see you in 2022.
Final Box Score
R H E
Hadley 0 6 2
Windom 1 7 2
