Posted: 4/20/06
Pitching a key to baseball winning streak
By Luther Dorr
As winning streaks go it's a modest one.
But coach Jesse Zimmer was more than willing to count a streak of three straight wins after two Mississippi 8 Conference wins by the PHS baseball team last week.
Scott Roehl picked up an 11-3 win at Rogers on Tuesday and Josh Ludwig pitched a three-hitter in a 4-2 win at St. Michael-Albertville Thursday, leaving the Tigers at 3-2 for the season, 2-1 in M8 play.
"I think overall we've been playing very well," Zimmer said Saturday, happy that players chose to come in Friday for an optional practice on a school vacation day. "Our pitching has been excellent."
The team plays at Buffalo today (Thursday), at home Tuesday against Becker and at Big Lake next Thursday in the third week of two-a-week conference games.
There are also two conference games the following week but the pace picks up a little as Princeton hosts the Tiger Classic on Friday and Saturday, May 5 and 6. St. Francis, Hermantown and Brainerd are in the annual tournament.
Rogers
Roehl gave up only two hits, an earned run and struck out seven in five innings.
He surrendered a first-inning run but gave up only one hit his last four innings.
Princeton banged out 12 hits, three by Mitch Larsen and two by Zach Neubauer.
"We had real good at-bats," Zimmer said. "We were aggressive without swinging at bad pitches."
Princeton scored four runs in the second inning for a 4-1 lead and led 8-1 after four innings.
Vince Miller, Ludwig and Ryan Danna each had a double for Princeton and Jordan Neubauer, Miller and Ludwig each drove in two runs.
Larsen had two of Princeton's five stolen bases.
PRINCETON (11)
AB R H RBI
J. N'bauer,c 5 1 1 2
Laiho,cr 0 2 0 0
Larsen,cf 4 1 3 0
S. Roehl,p 5 1 1 1
T. Roehl,2b 4 0 1 0
Z. N'bauer,ss 3 2 2 0
Miller,lf 4 1 1 2
Ludwig,1b 3 1 1 2
Macko,3b 2 1 1 1
Rosevold,3b 0 0 0 0
Danna,rf 2 1 1 0
Miller,rf 2 0 0 0
34 11 12 9
ROGERS 19 3 2 2
IP H R ER BB SO
S. Roehl 5 2 1 1 1 7
Larsen .2 0 2 2 5 1
Ludwig 1.1 0 0 0 0 1
St. Michael
After playing errorless ball against Rogers, Princeton had five errors.
Both runs off Ludwig were unearned, one scoring because of two errors in the third inning and one after a passed ball on a called third strike in the fourth.
"He [Ludwig] was very good," said Zimmer. "It was one of his best pitching performances."
Ludwig, a senior right-hander, threw only 72 pitches.
The Knights scored a run in the third but Princeton took the lead with two in the fourth, Miller plating one with a single and the other scoring on a passed ball.
With the score tied 2-2 in the fifth, Jordan Neubauer reached with a leadoff walk and scored.
Ludwig helped his own cause in the sixth by lining a double over the right fielder's head that scored Kris Macko who had singled and stolen second.
Ludwig had two of Princeton's seven hits, Roehl three.
PRINCETON (4)
AB R H RBI
J. N'bauer,c 3 1 0 0
Larsen,cf 4 0 0 0
S. Roehl,ss 4 1 3 0
T. Roehl,dh 2 1 0 1
Rosevold,1b 0 0 0 0
Z. N'bauer,2b 3 0 0 0
Miller,lf 3 0 1 1
Matthewman 2 0 0 0
Danna,ph 0 0 0 0
Macko,3b 3 1 1 0
Ludwig,p 3 0 2 1
27 4 7 3
S.M.A. 26 2 3 1
IP H R ER BB SO
Ludwig 7 3 2 0 2 7
Princeton Union-Eagle
P.O. Box 278
Princeton, MN 55371
Telephone: 763-389-1222
Fax: 763-389-1728