Bulldogs lose conference games to Elk Mound and Mondovi
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BOYCEVILLE shortstop Nick Olson fired the baseball to first base during a May 4 home game versus Elk Mound. Boyceville lost 13-3.
—photo by Shawn DeWitt
BOYCEVILLE — Cold bats and defensive errors led to a pair of lopsided home conference losses for the Boyceville baseball team this past week.
In their most recent games versus the Dunn-St. Croix’s top two squads – Elk Mound and Mondovi – Boyceville committed nine errors and had a combined seven hits.
Both spelled disaster for the Bulldogs who lost both games via the ten-run rule on their home turf at Evenson Field. Hosting Elk Mound last Thursday, May 4, Boyceville lost 13-3 in six innings which was followed by five-inning, 15-4 setback to visiting Mondovi Monday, May 8.
With these most recent losses, the Bulldogs fell to 4-5 in the Dunn-St. Croix and 6-5 overall. Boyceville heads to Durand this Thursday before returning home to host Prairie Farm Friday. Next Monday and Tuesday, May 15 and 16, the Bulldogs have conference games against Glenwood City and Spring Valley, respectively.
Elk Mound
Facing the conference’s top team, Elk Mound, which has yet to lose a league contest, the Boyceville Bulldogs needed to be at their best.
Unfortunately, they were not.
Boyceville struggled offensively, collecting just four hits, and defensively, committing five costly errors, in a 13-3 defeat at Evenson Field Thursday, May 4.
“We knew we were playing the top team in the conference, but thought we could hang with them if we played our best game,” stated Boyceville head coach Michael Roemhild. “Unfortunately, we did not!”
The lack of offensive and defensive support doomed pitcher Devin Halama’s start. In four and a third innings of mound work, Halama surrendered eight runs and ten hits while walking three and striking out only a pair to take the loss. Freshmen Landyn Leslie and Zach Hellendrung came on in relief. In an inning and a third, the Mounders scored four runs off Leslie without the aid of a single hit thanks to errors and a couple of walks. Hellendrung surrendered a hit, a pair of walks and a run in a third of an inning.
Elk Mound led 6-1 after two innings of play. The Mounders added two runs in the fifth and five more in the sixth to go ahead 13-1.
Boyceville scored a pair of runs in their half of the sixth, but Mounder hurler Kamron Diermeier, who went the distance, closed out the game with his 14th strikeout.
Landyn Leslie had two of the Bulldogs four hits while Chase Hollister and Zach Hellendrung each had a hit.
“We had too many errors behind Devin,” noted Coach Roemhild.
BOYCEVILLE relief pitcher Landyn Leslie prepared to throw the baseball to first in an attempt to pick off an Elk Mound base runner during a May 4 game at Evenson Field. —photo by Shawn DeWitt
Roemhild said that if the team is going to strike out 14 times it needs to play tough, error-free defense which he admitted the Bulldogs are not currently doing.
“We can’t strike out 14 times a game and expect to be in a game,” concluded Roemhild.
Mondovi
The Buffaloes stampeded into Boyceville Monday, May 8 and earned a convincing 15-4 victory over the Bulldogs.
Mondovi touched Boyceville pitchers Landyn Leslie and Wyatt Sell for a dozen hits in the process.
Leading 5-0 after three innings, Mondovi put seven on the scoreboard in the top of the fourth.
Boyceville finally scored a pair in the bottom of that inning but Mondovi tacked on three more runs in the fifth for a 15-2 advantage.
The Bulldogs came up with two more runs in the bottom half of the fifth but it was not enough to extend the contest another inning.
“Mondovi is a good team who can really hit the ball,” said Roemhild. “We had three innings in a row where they had two outs and no runs and then they (Buffaloes) would put up a couple of runs.”
Zach Hellendrung finished with two of the Bulldogs three hits which included a double. Nick Olson had the team’s other hit.
Leslie took the mound loss as he gave up ten runs on eight hits which included a home run, struck out four and walked two in three and two third innings. Sell pitched the final inning and a third and allowed five runs on four hits and gave up three walks.
Boyceville also committed four errors.