Jacob Groff of Seward tries to dodge an inside pitch against Wilber June 23 at a tournament in Crete.
Tayden Vandenburg of Seward just gets under the ball against Wilber June 23 in Crete.
The Seward American Legion juniors were second in the Gretchen Walker Memorial baseball tournament June 22 through 24 in Crete. Team members are, from left: (front row) Cody Nagel, Cole Gray, Jordan Covert, Jake Luebbe, Ethan Ideus, JJ Metschke and Hunter Novacek; and (back row) Coach Casey Berg, Tayden Vandenberg, Colten Meyer, Gavin Hamling, Theo Hughes, Jacob Groff, Jacob Rhoades, Dylan Hiser and Coach Jesse Pugh. Not pictured is Zac Tonniges.
After missing out on a Tuesday game because of rain, the Seward American Legion juniors entered the Gretchen Walker Memorial tournament in Crete after a week-long break.
The team went 2-1 in the tournament and finished second. Seward beat Lexington 16-7 and Wilber 8-0 before losing to Kearney 5-4 in the championship game.
“We played pretty well,” Coach Casey Berg said. “We hit well, and we pitched well. A lot contributed. Everyone was ready to go.”
Seward led 10-1 after the first inning against Lexington June 23. Although Lexington scored six in the third inning, Seward continued to pull away for the win.
The team notched 11 hits in the game, with JJ Metschke, Zac Tonniges and Tayden Vandenburg recording two each. Metschke and Gavin Hamling each drove in three runs, as well.
It was a busy game for Metschke, who also pitched all five innings for the win. He struck out five.
Seward played Wilber later that day and shut them out 8-0. Seward scored six in the fourth inning to put the game away.
Hamling and Theo Hughes each had two hits. Hughes was also the winning pitcher, striking out seven in four innings. Jake Luebbe pitched one inning in relief.
In the championship game June 24, Seward led 4-0 going into the bottom of the fourth. But Kearney scored five in that inning to take the lead, and Seward wasn’t able to score again.
“The kids were pretty bummed,” Berg said. “I think they’re playing their best baseball of the season.”
Kearney pitching held Seward to six hits, each by a different hitter. Hamling took the loss, pitching 5 1/3 innings and allowing all five runs.
The Seward seniors had all three scheduled games rained out.
The teams have a full week on tap, with home games Tuesday, Friday and Sunday and a trip to Hickman on Wednesday. Opponents at home are Roncalli Tuesday, York Friday, June 29, with the juniors starting at 5:30 p.m., and Aurora on Sunday, July 1, starting at 1 p.m. with the juniors.
The juniors’ district tournament starts Friday, July 6, and will be in Fairbury. Brackets have not yet been released.
