St. Peter qualifies for state with 1-0 win over Belle Plaine

Posted August 5, 2014


St. Peter qualifies for state with 1-0 win over Belle Plaine

By Pat Beck, St. Peter Herald

Ace pitcher Matt Lewis and the St. Peter Saints redeemed themselves  by shutting out Belle Plaine 1-0 and qualifying for the state Class C amateur baseball tournament for the first time since 2010.

Lewis (8-1) won a pitchers' duel with Belle Plaine ace left hander Ryan Diers on Sunday night at Veterans Field.

Both pitched well with runners on base. Lewis allowed six hits, and the Tigers left seven runners on, including the bases in the eighth inning with two outs. Diers gave up eight hits, and the Saints stranded six runners, including bases loaded in the sixth with one out.

Lewis also went the distance in the Saints' regular season 4-3, 10-inning loss to the Tigers.

But in the rematch, Lewis didn't allow a run, while striking out six, walking one and hitting one batter.

"He threw strikes, and he got ahead most of the time," St. Peter manager Tom Lacina said. "His slider was working well. He was hitting spots today. And we played good defense."

First baseman Jeff Menk made the play of the day, climbing the fence to pick off a foul ball. Center fielder Ty Kaus also made a nice running-in catch.

St. Peter (23-7) scored the lone run in the first inning. Kaus led off with an opposite-field double down the left-field line. Left fielder Ryan Kapsner singled to left and advanced Kaus to third. Kapsner stole second, and Kaus scored on a RBI ground out by right fielder Seth Wenner.

Seth Wenner and catcher Shea Roehrkasse both batted 2-for-4. Kapsner and third baseman Billy Hanson finished 1-for-3. Shortstop Ryan Wenner hit 1-for-3 with a hit by pitch.

Now the Saints face Jordan for the Region 6C championship at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Min Met. Both qualify for state along with a third team to be determined from the region.

Jordan defeated Henderson 11-1 in seven innings to advance to the region title game.

The state tournament will be close to home, starting Friday, Aug. 15 at Belle Plaine and Jordan. The Region 6C champion will play have a first-round bye and play at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 23 at the Jordan Mini Met. The region runner-up will open state at 12 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 17 at Tiger Park in Belle Plaine.

Eight of the players were on the 2010 team: Lacina, Hanson, Jesse Anderson, Ryan Wenner,  CJ Siewert, Jordan Seebach, Jeremy Braun, Mike Enz and Grant Nelsen.

Newcomers to the 20-man tournament roster are Kapsner, Kaus, Lewis, Menk, Roehrkasse, Jayme Munsterman, Cameron Victor, Jeff Wenner, Seth Wenner, Jordan Wilmes and Jesse Munsterman, who is out for the season with Tommy John's shoulder surgery.

Kaus and Lewis also have experience playing at state as draftee pitchers for other teams.

"The core of the guys were here in 2010," Lacina said. "We've got some young guys, and this is good experience for them. Hoping we can go there and at least win a game."

However, Lacina said the Saints have been successful this season because of a deeper line-up.

"We've had more depth than we've had before," said Lacina, in his 24th year with St. Peter. "And we've played pretty good defense pretty much the whole year.

"Defense and good pitching have been the keys to success. For the most part, our pitchers have thrown strikes. If you throw strikes, you're going to be in most every game. Both pitchers threw really well today."

Diers pitches at St. Cloud State, and he was in the Northwoods wooden bat league for for the first part of the season.

"He throws hard, and he's got a nice breaking ball," Lacina said. "He's tough on left-handed hitters, and three or four of our main hitters are left handed."

The Jordan game (27-8 and ranked No. 4 in the state) will be another rematch for unranked St. Peter. Jordan defeated St. Peter 12-0.

"We had a bad game when we played them earlier this year," Lacina said. "To beat them, it will take another game like this. But the good thing about is that we're in the state tournament."




Recent Results
Sun Jul 30/23 6:00pm: (2023)
St. Peter -
Belle Plaine -
Fri Jul 28/23 7:30pm: (2023)
St. Peter 0
Jordan 5
Wed Jul 26/23 7:30pm: (2023)
St. Peter 8
Arlington 1
News

Saints cruise to 8-1 win over Arlington to open postseason play

July 28, 2023   read more

St. Peter upends Waterville to open Region 6C playoffs

August 07, 2022   read more

Saints Advance to Regions with 1-0 Win Over St. Clair

July 31, 2022   read more

Saints Open Postseason With Victory Over Braves

July 29, 2022   read more

Saints finish 2021 season 10-9 overall

July 26, 2021   read more

Town team starts 2021 season 7-4 after first month

June 21, 2021   read more
Upcoming Games
Sun May 12/24 4:00pm: (2024)
@ St. Peter
Gaylord -
St. Peter -
Fri May 17/24 7:30pm: (2024)
@ St. Peter
Belle Plaine -
St. Peter -
Sun May 19/24 2:00pm: (2024)
@ Jordan
St. Peter -
Jordan -
Attendance

Number of visits to the site:

2471635

Store


$44.99
St. Peter Saints baseball Embroidered JERZEES Men's SpotShield™ Jersey Polo Shirt
see more