Sports

Scrappy Braves fall in Region V final

By Matthew Semisch

05/27/2014

Ahead of its 2014 season, the Bottineau High baseball team’s biggest goal was the same as most teams’: To reach the state tournament.

Despite somewhat heavy odds, the Braves nearly did exactly that.
After besting North Star 12-2 in an NDHSAA Class B Region V tournament play-in game May 15, Bottineau went on to win two more games at the Revion V finals last week in Harvey.

That’s the good news.

The bad news is that Harvey-Wells County, the host team for the tournament, handed Bottineau both of the Braves’ losses in the double-elimination event.

Fielding issues that the Braves had in recent weeks again reared their ugly heads at the least opportune to bring Bottineau’s season to an end with a record of 15 wins and seven defeats.

HORNETS BREAK OUT THEIR STINGERS

The first of those two losses came in the first round proper on May 19 in the form of a 4-2 win for the Hornets.

Bottineau struggled early on in the game, going out 1-2-3 in each of the first three innings.

Braves third baseman Andrew Hill then led off the top of the fourth frame with a triple to give Bottineau its first base hit of the day. It then got onto the scoreboard when pitcher Luke Amsbaugh singled to drive Hill across home plate.

First baseman Garrett Lynnes provided the Braves’ only other run of the day when he belted a home run in the top of the fourth inning. In the end, though, those two runs proved to not be enough.

BRAVES GET BACK ON TRACK

Bottineau played again later that afternoon and ended the 2014 season of a Rugby team that beat the Braves 20-12 on May 10.

The rematch was a closer affair in which Bottineau prevailed by an 8-6 count in eight innings.

Hill, pitcher Parker Engelhard and Amsbaugh - who played shortstop against the Panthers - all scored in the first inning to help the Braves jump out to a healthy early lead.

Hill and designated hitter Dylan Block then both pushed across the plate in the fourth inning and catcher Lee Schneider scored in the fifth.

When the teams finished the seventh inning tied at 6-6, two runs in the eighth from Hill and Engelhard proved to be the difference.

BRAVES BOW OUT ON DAY TWO

Bottineau kept things rolling last Tuesday by knocking off Northern Lights 6-2 to earn a spot in the Region V championship game.

The Braves went 1-2-3 in the first two innings against the Comets but exploded in the third for four runs before scoring another two in the fourth to end the Rolette-Wolford-Rolla co-op team’s season.

Bottineau’s number came up next later that day, though, and it found its season over after dropping a second decision against HWC in as many days.

The Braves would have had to defeat the Hornets twice - first on Tuesday and then once again Wednesday evening - in order to qualify for this week’s Class B state tournament in Jamestown.

That Wednesday game never came, however, as Bottineau fell 6-4 Tuesday evening in the Revion V final.

BRAVES PLAYERS, COACHES REFLECT

Although the result of the Region V final was clearly disappointing, it hadn’t been all bad news in Harvey for the Braves. Far from it, in fact.

Four Bottineau players - Amsbaugh, Engelhard, Hill and utility player Brody Moum - were named to the NDHSAA Class B All-Region V Team. More importantly, though, the Braves had gone from having to play their way into the regional tournament proper to coming one game short of going to state.

Moum pointed out that this year’s team ran hot and cold, but that they can be successful again next season if they can shore up the defense.

“I think our season went pretty well,” Moum said, “But we could’ve played a little better at times and were pretty streaky.

“We’d go from winning a few big games to dropping a few easier games, but we’ve just got to clean up the defensive side of it and I think we’ll be good next year.”

Hill, a senior who will play next season at Minnesota State-Fergus Falls, was proud of how the Braves fought to the end.

“It’s a tough loss being that close to state, but I’m just proud that we got there,” Hill said.

“We played hardest near the end of the season and almost pulled out, and just the fact that the guys fought was good.”

Bottineau head coach Zach Keller rued some missed opportunities from earlier in the season. However, he feels the Braves’ future could be bright.

“Our defense sputtered a little bit this year, and that’s what caught us up in the middle of the season,” Keller said,“But the guys played a pretty good regional tournament.

“I’m really happy with how they played there, and hopefully now we can carry some of that over and pick it up next year and get to the state tournament.”

Bottineau loses four seniors from its 2014 baseball team. Hill and right fielder Justin Wall have now graduated, as have Lynnes and catcher and pitcher Lee Schneider, both of whom will stick around next year to attend and play for Dakota College at Bottineau.