Spartans escape with win over Proctor

by Gary Giombetti

NASHWAUK — The Proctor High School baseball team pulled off one Houdini escape act, but trying to do it twice was one too many.

The Rails were staring at a runner on second and no outs in the bottom of the seventh inning against Nashwauk-Keewatin, but relief pitcher Bud Tessier got out of the frame unscathed.

Then in the bottom of the eighth, Tessier found himself in trouble again, with a runner on second and one out.

This time, however, the Spartans’ Mike Patras delivered a single to right-center field, scoring Joe Martire with the winning run as Nashwauk-Keewatin beat Proctor 4-3 at Angelo Taddie Field Tuesday.

Patras just wanted to get the game over with, especially after losing that opportunity in the seventh inning.

“I got up there and concentrated on the pitch and selection of it,” Patras said. “It was an inside fast ball, but when I hit it, it didn’t feel very good. It vibrated pretty good, but I thought it was in.”

Patras’ hit ended a game in which each team matched the other through seven innings. Both teams scored one run in the first, second and third innings, then went scoreless the rest of the way.

Proctor started the scoring in the first of Nashwauk-Keewatin starting pitcher John Kalmi as Kyle Wojtysiak singled and took second on an error. He eventually scored on another Spartans’ miscue.

Nashwauk-Keewatin matched that run during its half of the first without the aid of a hit.

John Chimento, Josh DiIorio and Kalmi all walked, then Chimento scored on a wild pitch by Proctor starter Ryan Vanderscheuren.

In the second, the Rails took a 2-1 lead as Jake Comnick singled and took second on an error. Tessier singled him to third, and Comnick scored on sacrifice fly by Dan Carlson.

The Spartans answered with one in the bottom of the second, once again without a hit.

Dusty Pleshe and Brandon Yuhala were both hit by a pitch and Patras walked to load the bases with one out. Vanderscheuren uncorked another wild pitch to tie it 2-2.

Proctor retook the lead in the third as Wojtysiak walked, took second on a wild pitch and scored on a single by Ryan Anderson.

The lead was short-lived, however, as Brett Martinson singled with one out, then walks to Jake Sletten, Yuhala and Reid Velo forced home the tying run.

Kalmi settled in after that and allowed just three hits the rest of the way.

Vanderscheuren started the fourth inning with a strikeout, then tried to field a ground ball by DiIorio, but misplayed it for an error. Even worse, he sprained his right ankle and had to leave the game.

That brought in Tessier, who with the help of two double plays, kept the Spartans off the board in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings.

That set the stage for the bottom of the seventh inning when Kalmi led off with a double. Martinson stepped to the plate with the green light to swing away instead of bunting the runner over to third. He proceeded to pop out to first base.

Tessier got the next two hitters on a ground out and strikeout to keep his team in the game.

“Brett has been swinging the bat really well, and we wanted him to know we had the confidence in him to drive in runs,” Nashwauk-Keewatin coach Dave Bevacqua said.

According to Proctor coach Tim Rohweder, his team got out of that inning just the way it was drawn up on the chalkboard.

“That’s what we’ve been working on,” Rohweder said. “We want the guys to feel they can get out of any situation. We have the tools, but a lot of it is the mental part of the game.

“I was watching to see if they could do it, and they showed me they could do it. They did what I asked.”

The Rails seemed to gain most of the momentum heading into the top of the eighth inning, but maybe they had too much fire on their side as Kalmi struck out the side even though Anderson reached second on an error.

“We were flying too high,” Rohweder said. “He was just throwing fast balls, and we couldn’t hit it. They gave us the error, but we couldn’t get anything out of it.”

According to Bevacqua, Kalmi was at his best in that eighth inning.

“He looked really sharp,” Bevacqua said. “When he went out for the eighth inning, I told him it was his last inning. Maybe he went out strong because it was his last inning.”

With the ball clearly in their corner, the Spartans took advantage of a walk to Joe Martire, then a sacrifice bunt by Aaron Carlson.

Patras found a Tessier pitch to his liking and looped it to right-center field for the game-winning hit.

“Trying to get out of that twice is hard to expect,” Rohweder said. “I had my ace on the mound, and he only allowed one run and three hits. I couldn’t ask for anymore out of him.

“We finally put a complete game together but it’s hard to lose a game like this.”

Proctor 111 000 00 — 3 7 1

N-K 111 000 01 — 4 4 4

Proctor: Ryan Vanderscheuren, Bud Tessier (L) (4th) and Seth Reinke; Nashwauk-Keewatin: John Kalmi (W) and Dusty Pleshe; 2B — Kalmi.

(The Hibbing Daily Tribune, May 22, 2003)