West Salem baseball ends conference foe G-E-T’s season


            Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau senior Warren Stoner tracked down a ground ball in front of the pitchers’ mound during last Tuesday’s regional playoff loss at West Salem High School.       (Times photograph by Benjamin Pierce)

One of the top baseball teams in the Coulee Conference this spring used a strong start as the catalyst to end Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau’s 2023 season last week.

Third-seeded West Salem stole a 4-0 lead in the first inning of last Tuesday’s regional semifinal at West Salem High School and added six more runs en route to a 10-2 win over the sixth-seeded Red Hawks.

Coach Scott Hovell and G-E-T end the year with a 13-11 record, while West Salem (18-3 this season) was scheduled to play in a Division Two sectional semifinal on Tuesday.

The Red Hawks scored both of their runs in the top of the third inning to cut the hosts’ lead to 6-2, but the Panthers matched the scoring in the bottom of the inning.

Owen Eddy brought home G-E-T teammates Chris Wagner and Brenden Brady on a hard-hit ball to the infield that was mishandled by the West Salem shortstop.

Stoner and Brady each finished the day two-for-three at the plate, and Stoner hit a double on a day the Red Hawks finished with six hits as a team.

Four pitchers split time on the mound for G-E-T, allowing five earned runs. The squad of Collin Handke, Stoner, Thomas Haney and Oliver Marley struck out two West Salem batters and walked seven others.

West Salem was led by Chris Calico, who had a game-high three hits.

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