Rosetown Legion Tops Hamline Red

Zach Hayes of the Rosetown Legion baseball team had a bit of a roller coaster ride at Midway Stadium on Thursday night.

Hayes started the game as the pitcher and saw his team fall behind 1-0 against Hamline Red. But he completed Rosetown’s rally in the end with a sixth-inning RBI to drive in the eventual winning run. Rosetown beat Red 2-1 and win its second in a row.

 “I put contact on the ball and got a good swing,” Hayes said.

The ball sailed well over first base into center field, and it brought home Eden Cranston from third for Rosetown’s first lead at 2-1. Rosetown battled back against Red after knocking on the door offensively throughout the game at St. Paul’s Midway Stadium.

In addition, Rosetown showed signs of turning the corner as a team after a 1-4 start to the season. They beat Hamline Purple on Monday, 5-2, prior to Thursday’s game.

“I have told the guys that if they keep making the fundamental plays, we are going to be in each ball game,” first-year Rosetown coach Jesse Lopez said.

Hayes started the game on the mound and shut down Red with three quick outs in the first inning, and he allowed two hits through the first three innings while striking out two batters.

Offensively, Rosetown threatened with runners in scoring position each of the first three innings. Their biggest threat came in the third when Ryan Minder darted from second to third when Tim Truninger made contact for what at first appeared to be a big play. Instead, Red pulled a double play with the catcher catching a foul ball and then throwing to third for the tag on Minder.

The Red then capitalized in the fourth inning with a RBI to go up 1-0. Next, the Red loaded the bases with two outs. Hayes closed out the inning with a strike out to stop the bleeding.

“Earlier in the year, when we made mistakes, the whole team would get down,” Hayes said.

This time, however, Rosetown kept battling back. Rosetown left three runners stranded in the fourth and fifth innings. Austin Colvard reached third base during the fifth with two outs, but Richie Podvin went down swinging in the next at-bat. Colvard had two singles and two stolen bases in the game.

“We were looking for clutch hits and just trying to rally,” Rosetown’s Brian Tschida said.

Tschida came in to pitch in place of Hayes during the top of the fifth inning. Red loaded the bases a second time, but Rosetown short stop Charlie Pelzer initiated a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.

“It was a big play, and we really needed it,” Tschida said.

Tschida struck out two and allowed no hits in the top of the sixth. He then led off the bottom of the sixth with a single. Cranston followed it up with a triple to drive home Tschida from first base for the tying run, 1-1.

“Once the ball hit ground, I knew I could make it home,” Tschida said.

Hayes then followed up that run with a RBI to bring Cranston home for the lead.

“We worked together and had each other’s backs,” Hayes said. “It felt great.”

Rosetown improved to 3-4 with the win as they head into a busy stretch with a tournament in Mendota Heights this weekend. Lopez sees his team heading in the right direction.

“Early on, we were not as good as we could be, but we are coming together,” Lopez said. “They had to get used to me, and we had to learn to work together.”

Lopez had seen Rosetown’s players compete for Roseville High School during their varsity baseball season, and he knew they could be competitive. The RAHS Raiders went 12-12 during the high school season.

Lopez came to coach in Roseville after a long tenure as the varsity baseball coach at Saint Bernard’s High School in Saint Paul, which closed in 2010. Lopez also plays baseball for the Coon Rapids Diamonds, a 35-year-old and over amateur league.

“We were uptight at first and wanted to impress him,” Cranston said. “Now, we are more relaxed.”

Rosetown  begins the tournament against St. Paul Park at Saint Thomas Academy on Friday at 4 p.m. On Saturday, Rosetown will play a pair of games against Stillwater and Rosemount in the tourney.