Whitehall baseball team stays hot with three wins

The Whitehall baseball team has won eight straight games after three victories last week.

The Norse had one close game but managed to score the winning run in the bottom of the seventh to beat Eleva-Strum, 5-4, last Tuesday. On Friday and Saturday, Whitehall beat Melrose-Mindoro and Arcadia by identical 12-3 scores.

In addition to winning eight straight, the Norse have won 10 of its last 11 with just three games remaining on the schedule. Whitehall has a shot at winning the Dairyland Conference Large Division title, sitting at 8-4 overall behind Mel-Min (9-3) and Osseo-Fairchild (10-2) before Tuesday’s game at Augusta.

Whitehall (11-5 overall) hosts Independence/Gilmanton on Thursday and plays at O-F next Tuesday. 

Whitehall 5 E-S 4

Connor Stevens singled to start the seventh then scored the game-winning run on a groundout. 

The defending state champions had just tied the game thanks to a walk and two hits in the top half of the inning. But Stevens delivered a single to put the winning run on right away in the bottom half. Stevens moved to second on a sacrifice and third on a wild pitch before Brett Schorbahn hit a grounder to the second baseman, allowing Stevens to score. 

The Cardinals scored two runs in the top of the first to take an early lead, but it wouldn’t last. 

Will Youngbauer led off the bottom of the first with a single for Whitehall and came around to score. He singled and scored again in the second as the second in a string of five straight Whitehall singles. Grayson Pronschinske got the streak started and also scored in the inning, as did Alex Sartor while Mason Pientok and Riley Herman also had hits. 

E-S answered with a run in the fourth, but Whitehall still had the lead entering the final inning. 

Youngbauer, Sartor and Pientok all had two hits for Whitehall. 

Luke Matejka was the winning pitcher, tossing two relief innings with two walks and two hits allowed while striking out one. Pientok was the starter, striking out seven and allowing four hits and four walks over five innings. 

Whitehall 12 Mel-Min 3

The Norse pulled away from one of the top teams in the conference with a big fourth inning.

The game was tied, 3-3, entering the bottom of the fourth, but the first four Norse players all reached base and came around to score. 

Deacon Steig hit into an error to start the inning before Mason Bautch was hit by a pitch. Schorbahn and Pronschinske delivered consecutive singles as the Norse took the lead. Alex Sartor added a single later in the inning as Whitehall batted around and scored five runs to take control of the game.

Will Youngbauer singled with two outs in the fifth and scored on a double by Sartor. Sartor scored later in the inning. Bautch added an RBI single as part of a two-run sixth for the Norse. 

Sartor was two-for-four at the plate with three runs scored and three RBIs. Peintok had one hit and two RBIs.

Luke Matejka was the winning pitcher, striking out two while allowing one walk and three hits. 

Whitehall 12 Arcadia 3

An old rivalry from summer baseball play was renewed as Whitehall took control midway through the game. 

The Norse took the lead on an RBI single by Pientok in the third inning. Pientok later scored on a sacrifice fly by Herman as Whitehall took a 3-0 lead in the inning. 

Arcadia answered with three runs in the top of the fourth, but that’s all they’d get in the game.

The Norse loaded the bases before Steig scored on a wild pitch to give Whitehall the lead. Pronschinske singled in another run before Sartor hit an RBI single and Herman picked up another RBI. Whitehall batted around as Steig hit a two-run single as part of a seven-run inning.

Herman managed to bat in three runs without registering a hit in the game. Pronschinske was two-for-three with two RBIs and Steig batted in two on one hit. Sartor was three-for-five with two RBIs.

Sartor was also the winning pitcher, tossing the first four innings with five strikeouts, five walks, and two hits allowed. Herman pitched the final three frames, striking out five with three walks and one hit allowed.