Carlton dropped a pair of games in Legion baseball recently. On June 25, Carlton fell 12-2 to Nashwauk, and on June 27 they dropped a 4-2 decision to Esko, a team they had beaten the week before.
"Nashwauk is strong in that they have about six members of their 2006 state tourney team back playing and several are playing college ball," mentioned Carlton coach Mark Saunders. "We knew we had our hands full since we don't have any '06 or '07 players."
Nick Stevenson started on the mound for Carlton, but eventually was worn down by the strong Nashwauk lineup.
"If it wasn't for Nick's strong pitching and some great defensive plays, the game would have gotten out of hand earlier," commented Saunders. "We were able to stay close until the fourth when JJ Wright hit a grand slam with two outs. Wright's home run was especially spectacular because it landed on the southbound lane of Highway 169, which is well beyond the fence and elevated."
Ben Rapp finished the game on the mound for Carlton and pitched two scoreless innings until the sixth when Nashwauk took advantage of a two-out error to put the game away.
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Jeff Clusiau of Nashwauk pitched a no-hitter into the sixth inning when Arthur Langhors of Carlton singled up the middle, which was followed by an Andrew Buller hit and Mike Saunders walk. With bases loaded, Cole Johnson singled to score a pair of runs.
- The following Wednesday, Carlton traveled to Esko to play a team they had beaten a week earlier, but this time the tables were turned with Esko taking a 4-2 win.
"We knew we'd have a tough time against their ace Kyle Hall," mentioned Saunders. "Andrew Buller pitched for us and did a great job of going the distance."
The outing was the first of the summer campaign for Buller, but he showed poise and moxy while mixing his pitches.
Esko scored all of their runs in the third with one out when Buller hit a batter and then Esko smacked out four straight hits to plate all four of their runs.
Steve Lewis led the Eskomos hitting barrage with three hits in the game.
Carlton scored in the fourth inning when Coleman Connolly singled and Dwyer Johnson doubled. Johnson had two doubles in the game.
"We couldn't get the timely hit when we needed it," explained Saunders. "The kids are showing a lot more discipline at the plate as the season progresses."
Carlton is now 2-5 and looking to peak at playoff time.
