The dream is cut short: Elrosa baseball suffers one-run loss in state finals (VIDEOS*)

I don't use this phrase often, but I think it's fitting to include it. The game was not for the faint of heart!

With their backs to the wall late in the Class C state tournament amateur baseball championship, the Elrosa Saints baseball team rallied and battled and hung in there after falling behind 5-1 to Fairmont. Three runs plated in the bottom of the 7th inning were not enough, however.

Final score on Sunday, September 6 in New Prague: Fairmont 5, Elrosa 4. The Saints finish an incredible season with a 27-9 overall record. It was an incredible ride. Thanks for the memories! This is just the third time in the history of the Stearns County League that one of our teams has played in the state championship game. The first was in 1998, when Richmond lost in the state finals by a 6-4 score to Glencoe. In 2017, Lake Henry lost 6-4 to Kimball in the Class C state finals.

Here's a video from an action-packed bottom of the second inning on Sunday night:


Time to rest up and recharge the batteries! It's Labor Day. Don't forget this event in rural Villard: BreakfastOntheFarm2026.

Monday afternoon update: I thoroughly enjoyed the trip to, and the time spent at Breakfast on the Farm in rural Villard. The Reichmann family is wonderful! One of their daughters-in-law is Tara Reichmann, who is the Minnewaska Area boys' and girls' head tennis coach. Her brother is former B-B-E superintendent Patrick Walsh.

Alas, it's time to get back to some very important sports writing.

And now back to baseball...
The Elrosa Saints finished 27-8 overall after completing a terrific 4-1 record at the state tournament. This is remarkable!

Here's a video from the bottom of the fourth inning against Fairmont:


The Saints had numerous players earn post-tournament awards. I'm getting that compiled tonight to write about.

Some additional coverage is being posted at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website: StateFinals6thInning.

Here's a video featuring action in the bottom of the 7th inning:


Peyton Winter, batting No. 8 in the lineup, is shown batting at the plate with three runners on with zero outs. At that point, Elrosa trailed 5-1.

Elrosa's dreams were gashed in the bottom of the ninth inning, when they left the tying run stranded at third base.

Community event announcement!
The Honebrink family and all the friendly staff of Brink's Beer Joint in Swift Falls invites everyone to the annual Turkey Fest celebration, which is on Saturday, September 19 in the scenic village of Swift Falls. Other details to follow in The Voice...the Turkey Fest parade starts at 5:30 p.m.!

Elrosa Saints are heading to the 'Ship! (VIDEO)

Don't look now! The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team is heading to the state championship game! They now take on Fairmont in the Class C state title game. This game will be played at 6 p.m. tomorrow, Sunday, September 6 in New Prague. The site is Memorial Park Baseball Stadium, where Elrosa won its first two state ball games. They are playing in their 13th state tournament in program history. Overall, this is Minnesota's 103rd state amateur baseball tournament. How about that!!

This marks the first time in Elrosa history that the baseball team will play for a state title. It will also be just the third time in the history of the Stearns County League that a team will play for a state title. It first occurred in 1998, when Richmond took second place. In 2017, Lake Henry also made it to the Class C finals but fell to Kimball.

Box score, Elrosa vs. Hanska:
Elrosa 0 1 0 3 1 0 0 0 1 - 6
Hanska 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 2

In tonight's game:
Tonight, in New Prague, the Saints faced Hanska in the state semifinals. They had a 5-2 lead going into the 9th inning. In the top of the 9th, the Saints scored one more run to make it 6-2. In the bottom of the 9th, Hanska loaded the bases on no outs with two walks and one hit batsman. Jared Cortez, a draftee from Norway Lake-Sunburg, entered as the second relief pitcher of the game. He proceeded to earn three straight strikeouts to seal the win!

Hanska (22-5-1) loaded the bases in the first inning but pushed just one run across home plate on an Elrosa error. They had a runner forced out at home, and the inning ended with a Lakers runner thrown out at home after tagging up on a fly ball to left field.

Elrosa scored once in the top of the second inning on a sacrifice fly-RBI to make it a 1-1 tie. The Lakers pulled ahead with one run scored in the bottom of the second for a 2-1 lead.

In the top of the fourth, Elrosa scored 3 times to gain a 4-2 lead and never looked back.

Overall, the Hanska Lakers left 15 runners stranded. They were held in check for the bulk of the game by Greenwald draftee Grant Moscho, who pitched 7 innings and earned the win with 6 walks and 7 strikeouts. Moscho is a first cousin to B-B-E head football coach Chris Moscho. He threw 136 total pitches and surrendered just 3 hits with no runs.

Derek Wiener and Luke Illies had 3 hits each to lead the offense, while Blaine Fischer and Ethan Mueller each had two hits with two RBI apiece. Altogether, Elrosa launched 13 hits on the Hanska Lakers.

Cortez, a Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg Class of 2024 graduate, is the son of James and Kris Cortez of Lake Johanna Township. Kris (Skarpness) is a B-B-E Class of 1996 graduate, while James was a 1996 K-M-S grad. Just for fun! Here's Jared's Southwest Minnesota State University baseball biography page: https://smsumustangs.com/sports/baseball/roster/jared-cortez/13611.

By the way! Fairmont's 2020 population is listed at 10,487. Elrosa's population stands around 230 people.

Here's a video from the state opener against Pierz back on August 23:


That video was recorded in the bottom of the fourth inning with Payton VanBeck pitching.

In case you missed it...


The Cedar Creek Gospel Band, made up of musicians based in Kandiyohi County, performed for the worship service held at the Brooten Pavilion on Sunday, August 30. The worship was hosted by the Big Grove-Crow River-Grace Lutheran and Trinity-West Lake Johanna Lutheran parishes.

More to come...lots of game notes to review!

Elrosa Saints are heading to the State Final Four!

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team has made program history by advancing deeper in the state tournament than any previous team. The Saints won 3-2 tonight in a nailbiter against Glencoe in the state quarterfinals at Shakopee.

In relief on the mound, Ashton Dingmann threw just 2 pitches to record 2 outs and earn the save. It was an incredible finish that had right fielder Derek Wiener reaching high above his head for a pop fly grab and the third out!

Payton VanBeck started and earned the win in 8 1/3 innings with 13 strikeouts. While he pitched, Glencoe earned just 3 hits. They finish their season 23-7 overall.

NEXT! Please spread the word! The Elrosa Saints (26-8) play at 6:30 p.m. in New Prague tomorrow, Saturday, September 5 against Hanska. At stake is a berth in the Class C state championship game.

In the other state semifinal game tomorrow: Starbuck advanced to the state semifinals after winning 6-5 in 12 innings against Luxemburg. The Stars trailed 4-0 early before coming back to tie the game at 4-4 and then 5-5 to force extra innigs. Starbuck plays at 4 p.m. in New Prague tomorrow against Fairmont.

Fairmont bounced Richmond from the tournament in their quarterfinal game tonight in Chaska. I don't have that final score.

How SWEET it is! Elrosa Saints advance in state tournament (VIDEOS)

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team is advancing to the Class C state tournament's second round. They earned this feat by defeating the Pierz Brewers 10-5 today in the opening round. With a massive 19-hit attack at the plate and a one-hit, six-inning starting performance by Payton VanBeck on the mound, the Saints led 8-0 after 6 innings.

When the dust settled on the game, every Saints player who saw action at New Prague's Memorial Baseball Stadium earned at least one hit against a total of four different Pierz Brewers pitchers.

Here's a video from the bottom of the 9th inning today:


The Saints take a 24-8 record into the Class C Sweet 16. They play at approximately 6:30 p.m. next Saturday, August 29 in New Prague. Their opponent will be the Dumont Saints.

The Saints scored 2 runs in both the first and second innings for an early 4-0 lead. This put VanBeck in the driver's seat, and he proceeded to fire 8 strikeouts while issuing just one walk. Pitching in relief tonight were Aiden Mueller (B-B-E Class of 2027) and Wyatt Steffensen (B-B-E Class of 2020).

Here's a video from the top of the second inning today:


Ahead 2-0, Jackson Peter hit a two-run home run in the second inning with a distance of about 358 feet.

Elrosa Saints vs. Pierz Brewers at STATE (VIDEO)

The Elrosa Saints face Pierz at approximately 4 p.m. in New Prague, Minnesota later this afternoon in the Class C amateur state tournament. That game follows Atwater's state opener.

Here's a video from the state-qualifying game last weekend, when the Saints defeated Farming:


Game updates to follow.

**Update: after 2 innings, Elrosa has a 4-0 lead over Pierz. 

With 6 innings complete, Elrosa has an 8-0 lead.

The final score and more will be posted in a NEW blog post. Hit refresh!

Elrosa Saints extend their season to next week (VIDEOS)

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team extended their season to next week with a 16-6 win in 8 innings today over Spring Hill. It was a wild game that had the Chargers jump all over Elrosa with a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Overall, Elrosa totaled 18 hits and had 11 earned runs against three Spring Hill Charger pitchers plus Meire Grove draftee and closer Jordan Klaphake.

Luke Illies and Peyton Winter had monster games with 4 hits each. Illies scored 5 runs, and Winter had 3 RBI.

Elrosa's next game is another elimination game next Saturday, August 15 at about 3:30 p.m. in Regal. Their opponent will be Farming.

Here's a video from the top of the 7th inning:


Here's a video from the top of the 8th inning:


Earlier today, New Munich won 8-4 over New London-Spicer to advance to next weekend's action.

In the first state qualifier game of the Region 8C tournament, Atwater won 12-3 over New London-Spicer on Saturday night.

In tonight's state qualifier at Regal...
Richmond and Starbuck are facing eachother in the winner's bracket of the region tournament. The winner of the game earns a state tournament berth and a spot in the Region 8C championship game, which is set for 6 p.m. on August 15.

The Royals grabbed the lead back at 7-6 with a Cole Schmitz two-run bomb on a breaking ball from Brayden Skindelien. The game is in the sixth inning. They ultimately scored 3 runs on 3 hits with no errors and none stranded. After 6 innings: Richmond 7, Starbuck 6.

Final score: Richmond 8, Starbuck 6. The Royals earn the region's second ticket to the Class C state tournament.

Video is uploading.

Battle For the Keg III

The Elrosa Saints face Spring Hill today in a Region 8C elimination game at Regal.

In the first game today in Regal, New Munich has a 3-1 lead over New London-Spicer after 5 innings.

Updates to follow.

**New Munich beat NL-S 8-4 to stay alive at regions. The Elrosa vs. Spring Hill game won't start until after 2 p.m.

Battle For the Keg III updates:
The Elrosa vs. Spring Hill game got started at about 2:15 p.m. For Spring Hill, they are starting Anthony Revermann on the mound. The Saints are going with Aiden Mueller as starter.

The game had a tough start for Elrosa. Spring Hill earned 6 hits in the top of the first inning and used that onslaught plus one Elrosa error to take a 4-0 lead. They left 3 stranded on relief pitcher Riley Meyer. In the bottom of the first inning, Elrosa scored 4 runs to make it a tie game.

After two innings complete, Spring Hill has a 5-4 lead.

After 3 innings complete, Elrosa has an 8-5 lead. Peyton Winter hit an RBI-single to put the Saints ahead 6-5.

Elrosa Saints win playoff title (VIDEOS)

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team won the Stearns County League North playoff title with a 6-5, 10-inning win over New Munich this afternoon in Greenwald. A base hit by Derek Wiener in the bottom of the 10th inning scored Luke Dingmann from second base for the walk-off win.

A three-run home run by Blaine Fischer in the bottom of the 8th inning tied the game at 5-5. In the first inning, New Munich took a 5-0 lead.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Jackson Peter hit a two-run home run to cut the deficit to 5-2.

Here's a video featuring action in the bottom of the 8th inning:


The game continued past the 9th inning thanks to some great plays made by Elrosa's defense in the top of the 9th inning.

Here's a video from the top of the 9th inning:


Next: the Saints open the Region 8C tournament on Saturday, August 8 at 3:30 p.m. in Regal, host of the 2026 region tournament. They will face the No. 2 seed from the County Line League.

In the second SCL-North game played today in Greenwald, Spring Hill defeated Greenwald 8-2 to keep their season alive. They earned a spot in the region tournament.

More to come. I haven't gotten a full grasp on who's still alive in the County Line League playoffs. The last I checked, teams still alive in the CLL playoffs are Atwater, Regal and Paynesville.

Plenty of baseball to catch up on

I'll start in the Stearns County League South with amateur baseball news...in the division playoffs on Saturday, Farming defeated Lake Henry 11-5 to earn a spot at the Region 8C tournament.

In the SCL-North, New Munich won a high-scoring contest 18-12 against Spring Hill in their division opener. New Munich earns the right to face Elrosa in a region seeding game for the SCL-North playoff banner. New Munich and Elrosa have a first pitch set for 12 p.m. in Greenwald today.

Later today in Greenwald, Spring Hill will face the Cubs in an elimination game.

In youth baseball news...
At the state tournament in Barnesville on Saturday, the B-B-E Jaguars 16-U Babe Ruth team took a very, very tough loss by a 7-6 score in regulation innings against neighboring Paynesville. The Jaguars scored 2 runs in the top of the seventh, but they ran out of outs before at least extending it to the bottom of the frame. They had a spectacular finish to their season with a fourth-place finish at state. How incredible is that!

In Greenwald...New Munich has a 5-2 lead through 7 innings over Elrosa.

*Update: the Saints tied the game 5-5 in the 8th inning.

Final: Elrosa 6, New Munich 5 in 10 innings.

Elrosa Saints clinch Stearns County League North title (VIDEOS)

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team clinched the regular season Stearns County League North division title this weekend with an 11-1 mercy rule win over Meire Grove on Friday night. On a sunny Saturday afternoon today, the Saints defeated Greenwald 11-3 to finish the SCL-North schedule with a 10-3 record.

Aiden Mueller started and got the win (IP-5 H-2 BB-0 K-6), and Riley Meyer pitched the sixth inning. Luke Dingmann was closer (H-1 BB-2 K-4).

Here's a video from the bottom of the 7th inning:


In that video, Jackson Peter hit a two-run home run over the left field fence. That hit gave the Saints an 11-3 lead. The Cubs scored all 3 of their runs in the top of the 6th inning.

Here's a video from the end of the game:


Next: the Saints host the division playoff opener on Saturday, July 25 at 1:30 p.m. Their opponent has not yet been determined. New Munich and Greenwald play tomorrow afternoon in a key SCL-North game. They are both jockeying for third place in the division.

And in other news...
Almost a week after Bonanza Valley Days concluded...and I've still got a mountain of photos and video to work through. It was a grand four-day event in Brooten!

Here's a video from the BVD sand volleyball tournament:


Team Anderson, which included head coach Kristina Anderson and Activities Director Chris Anderson, emerged as champions of this 10-team tournament, which was organized by Grant Anderson. A team picture of the champions was published in this week's issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper.

Mark your schedule for this coming week: the Padua Pub Dave's Famous Pork Chop and Sweet Corn Feed will be on Wednesday, July 22 from 5 to 8 p.m. Come early! Be ready to stand in line. It is always worth the wait!

Saints find success at Hinckley...and Bonanza Valley Days is coming

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team recorded two wins at the Hinckley Tournament over the weekend. On Friday night, the Saints defeated the Anoka Bucs 2-1. On Saturday, they beat the host Hinckley Knights in another thriller by a 3-2 score.

Buffalo handed Elrosa a 4-1 loss on Sunday afternoon. This puts them at 6-2 for the month of June and 14-5 overall. NEXT: the Saints look to cook at home with four straight games in Elrosa to close out the regular season. This homestand begins with Roscoe visiting on Thursday, July 2 with an 8 p.m. first pitch. It's the lone game of the Fourth of July weekend.

Scores this weekend in SCL play:
Roscoe 21, Farming 9
St. Martin 8, Lake Henry 4
Richmond 18, Meire Grove 2
Spring Hill 9, New Munich 7.

Bonanza Valley Days is coming!
Here's a link to view promotion of the Classic Car and Truck show for Bonanza Valley Days in Brooten on Saturday, July 11 (click on this link): BVD-CarShow-2025.

BVD garage sales! We are currently sitting at 8 or 9 listings for this week's newspaper. Hopefully that number increases. Last year, the list topped out at 15 garage sales! Yikes. That's awesome though, of course.

The BVD Kiddie Parade is on July 11...read all the details here: BVDKiddieParade2026.

Elrosa is hosting Richmond this afternoon

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team is hosting Richmond this afternoon in a Stearns County League game. They traveled to Farming less than 24 hours ago, to face the Flames, in another SCL game last night.

Last weekend, the Saints went 2-0 with a 13-3 exhibition win over Starbuck on Friday, May 15. On Sunday, May 17, the Saints traveled to Meire Grove and won 10-2 to improve to 2-1 in the SCL-North division standings.

**Sunday update: the Saints took a 13-3 loss at Farming last night. They were out-hit 14 to 9, and 6 errors proved costly. 

Today, Elrosa won a 3-2 walk off against Richmond with 3 runs scored in the bottom of the 9th inning.

Next: the Saints travel to St. Martin on Friday, May 29 for an 8:15 p.m. SCL game at Ray Weber Stadium.

On Monday: we have two Memorial Day programs to choose from. The Brooten American Legion and Legion Auxiliary hosts at 10 a.m. at the Brooten Pavilion. The Belgrade VFW and VFW Auxiliary hosts at 11 a.m. at Olson Auditorium in the high school.

Saints win Battle for the Keg I (*UPDATED)

The Keg is coming back to Elrosa.

In a Stearns County League North division game today, the Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team defeated Spring Hill 10-4 to square up their division record at 1-1 early in the season. The win was set up by a five-run 4th inning that broke a scoreless tie through three innings.

In the top of the 7th inning, Spring Hill cut into Elrosa's 7-1 lead with three runs. The Saints responded with Blaine Fischer's monster three-RBI double that bounced off of the centerfield fence, and reliever Wyatt Steffensen closer Luke Dingmann shut the door on the Chargers for the last 6 outs. Riley Meyer started for Elrosa and pitched well across 4 1/3 innings. (4 hits, one run, 5 walks, 3 strikeouts) before Steffensen entered in relief in the top of the fifth. Steffensen earned the win with 3 2/3 innings of work on the mound.

The Saints had 12 hits to 11 by the Chargers. Four of Spring Hill's 11 hits were doubles, but the Saints benefited from having no errors in the field to two by the Chargers. Earning 2 hits each for Elrosa were Ashton Dingmann, Luke Dingmann, Peyton Winter and Will VanBeck.

Here's a video featuring the end of today's game:


Elrosa's next town team game is an exhibition game in Elrosa on Friday, May 15 at 7:30 p.m. against Starbuck. Following that, the Saints travel the short trip east to Meire Grove to face the Grovers in an SCL-North game on Sunday, May 17 (1:30 p.m.).

In other news...
The Belgrade Commercial Club held its spring purse bingo event on Friday at the VFW with a nice turnout of 65. They also sponsored advertising for over a dozen garage sales in the Belgrade area. That advertising was published in the April 30 and May 7 issues of the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper.

The Brooten city council meets in regular session on Monday night. Once I get the agenda, it will be posted to the newspaper's editor's blog: lifeinbonanzavalley.blogspot.com.

The B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team plays their final home game of the season on Monday at 2 p.m. against Benson.

Elrosa Saints open state on Saturday

The brackets have been revealed!

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team opens their 12th state tournament appearance this Saturday, August 16 in Hutchinson. Their game at 1:30 p.m. that day will be against the Windom Pirates. The Pirates won the Region 10C title with a 3-1 win over the Milroy Irish at Milroy's Irish Yard on Friday.

Windom holds a 23-1 overall record. Their last state trip was in 2021, and their program won the Class A state championship in 1936.

Elrosa's state draftees are Weston Gjerde from Norway Lake-Sunburg, Grant Moscho from Greenwald and Ben Welle from Spring Hill.

Hutchinson's state tournament site is Veterans Memorial Field At Dave Mooney Memorial Complex. This is located along the South Fork Crow River. The address is 301 Ontario Street SE, Hutchinson, MN 55350. Other state tournament sites for all classes are Gaylord, Brownton and Glencoe.

Region baseball continues in Spring Hill (VIDEO, UPDATES)

In a seeding game at Spring Hill today, the Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team is facing Regal with the No. 3 seed to state up for grabs. Just like all Region 8C games, this game is being aired on KASM 1150 AM of Albany: http://www.mykasm.com.

Regal extended a 1-0 lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning while facing starter Hayden Sobiech. Luke Dingmann took over pitching duties in the fifth.

Josh Beier hit a three-RBI double in the bottom of the fifth inning to make it a 5-0 lead for the Eagles. In the top of the 7th inning, the Saints were unable to score with a deficit on the scoreboard of 6-0.

Brayden Skindelien walked with an RBI to extend Regal's lead to 8-0 in the bottom of the 7th inning. Regal's leadoff batter in the 7th hit a solo home run. In the bottom of the 7th, Regal scored twice on one hit with no errors and 3 left on base. Elrosa reliever Luke Illies recorded 3 strikeouts but also issued 4 walks.

In the top of the 8th, pinch hitter Kevin Kuefler drew a two-out walk. A throwing error then got Jackson Peter on base. Ashton Dingmann then punched a three-run home run to bust up the shutout. That at bat by Dingmann marked the first time that Elrosa had 2 runners on at the same time. A pop fly ended the top of the 8th inning with no runners stranded.

In the bottom of the 8th, Wyatt Steffensen took over pitching duties for Elrosa, and he fired a strikeout against the first batter he faced. Regal's next batter singled, and Steffensen then struck out Shane Radermacher.

Here's a video featuring action in the bottom of the 6th inning yesterday against Starbuck:


In the top of the 9th inning, Elrosa left two stranded as they went down on a strikeout for the game's final out. Final score: Regal 8, Elrosa 3. The Eagles continue at regions with another seeding game today against Farming. For the game, Regal had 12 runners stranded, while Elrosa left 6 on base.

As reported yesterday, Regal defeated Roscoe 6-4 to advance to state in their final elimination game. The Eagles and Rangers faced eachother in the opening game at Spring Hill yesterday.

As for the Class C amateur baseball tournament...
The state tournament begins next weekend with games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday (August 15,16,17) across four sites: Gaylord, Hutchinson, Brownton and Glencoe. The state brackets will be announced after 7 p.m. tonight, so for now, we don't know exactly when or where Elrosa plays their state opener. Additional state information is available at http://www.minnesotabaseballassociation.org/tournaments.

In other Region 8C games...
Paynesville won the Region 8C title by defeating Farming last night. The Pirates will be playing in the state tournament for the second time in program history.

Elrosa Saints stay alive at Region 8C (VIDEOS)

After trailing 1-0 going into the second inning today against New Munich, the Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team put up a 5-spot in the top of the second inning and stayed alive in the Region 8C tournament with a 10-4 win.

Will VanBeck started for Elrosa and earned the pitching win, and Wyatt Steffensen pitched in relief. Riley Meyer was closer.

Next: the Saints travel back to Spring Hill next Saturday (August 9) for another elimination contest. They play at 1:30 p.m. against Starbuck. It is also a state-qualifying game, so the stakes are huge!

Here's a video from the top of the 4th inning yesterday against Regal:


And here's another video from the Regal game...

Action in the top of the 5th inning...


Today's games in Spring Hill included a light drizzle/mist combination that delivered light precipitation throughout the day. The rainfall made conditions very tough during the first game today, an elimination game that featured Roscoe taking on the host Chargers. Roscoe won 12-6 to advance to next weekend's action.

In today's lone state-qualifying game played in Spring Hill, the Farming Flames edged Regal 3-2 to punch their ticket to the big show. The Regal Eagles play next Saturday, August 9 at 11 a.m. against Roscoe in an elimination game. Farming will make back-to-back appearances at state after also advancing last year.

A cool, wet day for Region 8C baseball (UPDATES)

The opening game of baseball at the Region 8C tournament for Sunday, August 3 features Spring Hill facing Roscoe in a win-or-go-home contest at Spring Hill. In the top of the 5th inning, the Rangers hold a 5-0 lead. All of their runs were scored in the first two innings.

In the bottom of the 5th, Spring Hill has scored twice. Austin Schoenberg then scored on a wild pitch to make it a 5-3 score.

In the top of the 6th inning, the Rangers extended their lead to 6-3.

In the bottom of the 7th inning, the Rangers hold an 8-5 lead. Spring Hill has the bases loaded with 1 out, but Roscoe is currently doing a pitching change from starter Braden VanderBeek. Roscoe reliever Josh Mackedanz then fired back-to-back strikeouts to end the threat.

Final: Roscoe 12, Spring Hill 6. The Chargers are eliminated, while Roscoe advances to an elimination game next Saturday (August 9) in Spring Hill with an 11 a.m. first pitch.

What's coming today in Spring Hill:
The second game of the day features Elrosa against New Munich at about 1:30 p.m.

Elrosa vs. New Munich updates...first pitch was just after 2:30 p.m.
Will VanBeck is Elrosa's starting pitcher, while Caden Sand is New Munich's starter.

New Munich scored with their leadoff hitter in the bottom of the first inning.

In the second inning, Will VanBeck and Kevin Kuefler earned back-to-back walks to load the bases. Ethan Mueller batted next, and he launched a three-RBI double! Peyton Winter, Will VanBeck and Kevin Kuefler all scored on Mueller's hit to the right-center gap. Elrosa 3, New Munich 1. Next! Jackson Peter launched a two-RBI home run to extend the lead to 5-1. Ashton Dingmann walked, and this proceeded to bring New Munich manager to the mound and pull Caden Sand from the mound. Will Funk took over pitching duties. Elrosa scored 5 runs on 4 hits with no errors and two left on base. After 1 1/2 innings: Elrosa 5, New Munich 1.

After three complete innings: Elrosa 5, New Munich 1.

In the 6th, Elrosa holds an 8-1 lead. They played 5 innings without an error. Will VanBeck is still on the mound.  

The Silverstreaks loaded the bases on walks and one error in the 6th inning, but they got snubbed on the threat with a ground ball play on Ian Funk's fielder's choice.

****The final score will be posted at 8 o'clock in a new blog post. If Elrosa beats New Munich, they play next Saturday at 1:30 p.m. against Starbuck in another Region 8C elimination game. 

The final game of today:
The final game of today is a state qualifier, with Regal facing Farming for a state tournament berth.

Region 8C amateur baseball opening weekend scores:
On Friday night in Elrosa, the Starbuck Stars came back from a 2-0 deficit and defeated Roscoe by a 5-3 score. In the other Friday night game, the Paynesville Pirates defeated Spring Hill 3-0.

On Saturday, Paynesville defeated Starbuck to earn the region's first ticket to the state tournament.

Region 8C amateur baseball opening weekend is underway

The opening games of the Region 8C town team baseball tournament took place on Friday in Elrosa. Today, Elrosa faces Regal in Spring Hill at 11 a.m.

More to come.

*Update: after 3 innings, Regal has a 5-1 lead.
*Update: after 4 1/2 innings, the Eagles have an 8-3 lead.

*Update: after 5 1/2 innings, Regal has a 10-5 lead.

Final: Regal 10, Elrosa 6. The Saints fall to the elimination bracket, and their next game is tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. back in Spring Hill.

For Regal, they play at 4 p.m. tomorrow in Spring Hill against Farming. This will be a state-qualifying game.

Update: on Friday in Elrosa, Starbuck defeated Roscoe 5-3. Roscoe will face Spring Hill in Spring Hill on Sunday in an elimination game at 11 a.m. That's all I have for scores at this point.

Farming defeated New Munich on Saturday.

The rest of today will be used up by the Pope County Fair in Glenwood. Here's additional coverage from the fair: https://www.bonanzavalleyvoice.com/section/news. Their fair has been outstanding! It has far and away exceeded all expectations.

Elrosa wins 10-inning thriller (VIDEO)

On the home diamond today in a battle of teams tied for second place in the Stearns County League North, the Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team prevailed 4-3 in 10 innings against New Munich. The Silverstreaks held an early 2-0 lead before the Saints cut the deficit in half with one run in the 5th inning.

Elrosa then pulled ahead 3-2 in the eighth inning. New Munich tied the game with one run in the top of the 9th inning. A sacrifice fly-RBI by Peyton Winter drove home Derek Wiener for the walk-off win in the bottom of the 10th.

To close out the regular season, the Saints host Meire Grove on Friday, July 11 with first pitch at 8 p.m. New Munich hosts Greenwald on Sunday, July 12 for their last regular season game. The SCL division playoffs start on Saturday, July 19 at the high seeds. Richmond will be the SCL-South's top seed, and Spring Hill is the No. 1 seed in the SCL-North.

Here's a video from the bottom of the 5th inning:


The Region 15C tournament coming in August will be hosted by Spring Hill.

In Bonanza Valley Days news...
I finally have Clay City posted at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website. You can read all the details for this exciting event (for all ages - especially children age 10 and younger)...by clicking here: https://shorturl.at/Tfrjc.

Other BVD news can be found by clicking here: https://rb.gy/j04480.

And in other news...this morning, our home garage received garage door repairs from Excel Overhead Door of Willmar. I was super impressed by their work! So here's my shout out to their company. Their website is https://www.exceloverhead.com.

Saints blank Cubs

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team defeated Greenwald 5-0 today in a Stearns County League North division game. A hitting advantage by a 12 to 5 margin, including a home run by Ashton Dingmann, was key to the win. Ethan Mueller started and pitched 8 innings for the win on the mound. Luke Illies closed in the 9th inning.

The win pulls the Saints into a tie for second place in the SCL-North standings with New Munich. A huge game is on deck next Sunday, when Elrosa hosts New Munich at 1:30 p.m. The winner gets a jump on earning the No. 2 seed for the division playoffs, which start on Saturday, July 19.

Smilin' D Arena held a Ranch Rodeo on Friday night; here's a video from that night:


From Thursday morning through Saturday evening, we received a full 5 inches of rain around the Brooten area.