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Welcome/Sherburn legion baseball flattens Madelia in sub-district game

BEATING THE TOSS — Welcome Post 553/Sherburn 356 runner Blake Jagodzinske (right) slides head-first to beat the throw to Madelia Post 19 third baseman Kaden Johnson on the heels of a wild pitch during opening-round action in the American Legion District 2, Sub-District ‘C’ baseball tournament Thursday at Veterans Memorial Field in Blue Earth. (Photo by Greg Abel)

BLUE EARTH — Blake Jagodzinske pitched the Welcome American Legion Post 553/Sherburn Post 356 baseball team into the Sub-District ‘C’ second round.

Jagodzinske threw a complete game to pace a 12-4 win over Madelia Post 19 during the first round of the District 2 tournament Thursday at Veterans Memorial Field in Blue Earth.

With the win, No. 4-seeded Welcome/Sherburn (3-8) faces top-seeded Winnebago Post 82/Blue Earth Post 89 at 7:30 p.m. tonight in Blue Earth. Host WBE earned a first-round bye during the five-team event.

“We need to give ourselves a chance,” said Welcome/Sherburn head coach Phillip Rotunda, whose team took a lead into the bottom of the seventh inning the last time it faced WBE before falling on a walkoff. “They’re a really good team, they’re the No. 1 seed for a reason. … We’re the underdogs, we’ve got nothing to lose. It should be a fun one.”

Madelia (2-9) moves to the elimination bracket where it will face Minnesota Lake at 5:30 p.m. tonight in Blue Earth. United South Central edged Minnesota Lake, 3-2, in Thursday’s second game.

Blake Jagodzinske allowed four runs — three earned — on six hits, one walk and one hit batter from the mound. He racked up eight strikeouts, including a stretch of five in a row.

Madelia looked to cause trouble in the top of the first, garnering two runs on two hits and two errors, but Jagodzinske forced a pop out and two strikeouts to end the frame with runners on second and third.

“Blake is a bulldog on the mound, he’s mentally tough out there,” Rotunda said. “Some pitchers can come unravelled and he did a good job weathering the storm. … Throwing strikes make a difference, having an error right away can make everything unravel, but he did a good job of keeping it to only two (runs).”

Welcome/Sherburn sent nine batters to the plate in the bottom half to answer.

Zach Anderson led off with a single to left-center before Kain Sanders attempted to drop a sacrifice bunt, with a throwing error putting runners on second and third with no outs.

Christian Bachenberg brought in Welcome/Sherburn’s first run with a single to left, then Blake Jagodzinske walked to load the bases.

Wyatt Williamson kept the no-out rally going with a two-run double to left field before Jacob Fiala grounded out for an RBI.

Lucas Jagodzinske brought in the final run of the frame with a single down the third base line, with Williamson scoring just ahead of the throw.

Posts 553 & 356 put another big number on the scoreboard in the second.

Anderson doubled down the left-field line, then took third on a wild pitch before Sanders walked and stole second. Bachenberg walked to load the bases, then Blake Jagodzinske hit a ground ball, leading to an error and two runs.

Williamson grounded out for an RBI, leaving Blake Jagodzinske on third, then Lucas Jagodzinske singled through the left side of the infield to score his brother.

“Anytime Blake is on the mound, it’s a good thing for us,” Rotunda said. “He threw strikes and we hit the ball hard. … We put the ball in play and that was huge.”

Welcome/Sherburn added a run on two errors in the bottom of the fourth, then Madelia scored twice on two hits, a hit batter and a sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth.

Posts 553 & 356 added two insurance runs in the bottom of the fifth when Anderson singled, Sanders walked, Bachenberg singled for an RBI and Blake Jagodzinske did the same.

Anderson had three hits, including a double, while Sanders reached base four times and scored two runs. Bachenberg had two hits, two walks and three runs scored, Blake Jagodzinske reached base four times and Williamson had a double and three RBIs.

MAD 200 020 0 — 4 6 5

W/S 540 120 x — 12 10 3

Blake Jagodzinske (WP) and Christian Bachenberg. Dylan Grev (LP), Elijah McCabe (2), Blake Altenburg (6) and Garrett Reed.

LOB–Welcome/Sherburn 7, Madelia 5. 2B–Wyatt Williamson (W/S), Zach Anderson (W/S), Eric Anderson (MAD). SF–Elijah McCabe (MAD).

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