Despite losing three contests last weekend, Sisseton-Britton-Webster (SBW) high school baseball coach Mark Nelson likes what he is seeing from his ballclub.
SBW fell to Sioux Valley 10-0 on Saturday and dropped decisions to Warner-Ipswich-Northwestern (WIN) 9-2 and Madison-Chester 8-1 on Sunday. The local diamondmen, now 2-6, play at Groton at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
“It was a tough game for the boys on Saturday and we were victims of one bad inning. However, the kids did put the bat to the ball a little better. Sunday we played 14 defensive innings and in nine of those innings we gave up zero runs. That is a positive step towards a winning future. The defense played way better and there was a lot more energy in the dugout.
“Throughout the weekend there was a lot of team building team chemistry that came together for us,” added Nelson. “I was very happy with how we played against a really tough team in Madison on Sunday. They are a terrific ballclub and the kids really competed hard against them. I love coaching this group of guys, they care about this team. They are hard workers, and they’re starting to get that attitude and body language that are so important in not just baseball, but life.”
Sioux Valley 10
SBW 0
Sioux Valley broke open a tight 2-0 contest with a six-run uprising in the sixth inning to take charge.
SBW was out-hit just 8-5 but was guilty of six errors in the field, three of them in the sixth. LJ Crooks led the locals at the plate with a pair of singles. Carter Stickland added a double, and Levi Nelson and Rylan Anderson singled.
Ben Suther went five and a third innings on the mound for SBW, fanning seven.
Sioux Valley 200 006 2 – 10 8 0
SBW 000 000 0 – 0 5 6
D. Uecker, B. Teske (7); Ben Suther, Carter Stickland (6), Mitchell Burger (6) and Colton Chapin
WIN 9
SBW 2
Another big inning proved to be SBW’s downfall as WIN pushed across seven tallies in the third to grab a 9-0 lead.
SBW out-hit WIN 5-3 in the game but committed four miscues compared to none for the winners, and WIN took advantage of 11 walks. Suther rapped a pair of safeties for SBW and Nelson, Stickland, and Anderson each added singles.
Crooks started on the mound for SBW, fanning five but walking 11. Stickland came on in relief in the third and went the rest of the way, striking out seven and not allowing a base on balls.
WIN 207 000 0 – 9 3 0
SBW 000 000 2 – 2 5 4
B. Kroll and C. Mansfield; LJ Crooks, Carter STikcland (3) and Rylan Anderson
Madison-Chester 8
SBW 1
Madison-Chester broke open a 1-0 game with five runs in the third frame on the way to the win.
Stickland, Crooks, and Carter Grobe laced singles for SBW. Kaden Mills went five innings on the mound, fnning two and walking just two, and Chaz Vietor came on in relief.
SBW 000 010 0 – 1 3 1
MC 105 020 x – 8 9 0
Kaden Mills, Chaz Vietor (6) and Rylan Anderson; Q. Kurtz, C. Crabtree (6) and T. McGillivray
