Dawson Dedick of Malcolm connects against Kearney in the first round of tournament play June 22 in Crete.
Malcolm shortstop Dillon Beach waits for the throw from the catcher June 22 in Malcolm's game against Kearney.
It has been an unusual season for the young men who don the uniform of Malcolm Legion baseball. The combination of low numbers and injuries has meant the cancellation of some games and has forced several younger players who would typically suit up exclusively for the juniors to play up with the seniors.
It seems the extra experience against older competition is paying off. Playing against their own age group, the Malcolm juniors picked up two wins and a fourth-place finish in the Gretchen Walker Memorial Tournament June 22-24 at Crete.
After opening the tournament with a 17-1 loss to Kearney, Malcolm battled back to win two in a row. Brett Thieman and Jacob Schweitzer each drove in three runs while John Swotek went 3-for-3 at the plate in a 16-4 win over Fairbury. Rick Nickel picked up a complete game win while striking out nine.
Malcolm took advantage of seven Crete errors in a come-from-behind 12-11 win over the tournament host. Nickel scored the game winning run in the top of the seventh after reaching base on a dropped third strike. Two throwing errors on an attempted steal of second brought Nickel around.
Dillon Beach went 2-for-4 with a pair of runs batted in, while Connor Zegar drove in three runs.
“We’re starting to hit the ball better,” Malcolm head coach Doug Churchwell said. “At this level, if you can put the ball in play, good things can happen.”
Malcolm ran out of pitching and was overpowered 17-10 by a strong Wilber team in the third-place game.
“This weekend showed me that we’re getting better but that we still have a long way to go,” Churchwell said. “This season has been unique for many reasons, and I’m glad the boys are hanging in there.”
It was a week without games for the Malcolm seniors. Due to lack of available pitching, Malcolm canceled its scheduled June 19 game at Pleasant Dale. On June 20, both the juniors and seniors were scheduled to travel to Tecumseh, but those games were rained out.
The Malcolm juniors (4-6) and seniors (5-9) returned home Tuesday to host Valparaiso. The seniors will welcome Pleasant Dale Wednesday, June 27. Both teams will travel into Lincoln to play Parkview Christian on Thursday, June 28. North Bend comes to Malcolm for a junior-senior double-header Saturday, June 30, and Wilber will do the same on Sunday, July 1, in Malcolm.
