Boyceville drops D-SC baseball games to Elk Mound and Mondovi, sink Clear Lake Warriors
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BULLDOG third baseman Cole Retz made a throw to first base after fielding a ground ball during Boyceville’s conference and home opener against Elk Mound April 8. The Mounders won the game 15-4.
—photo by Shawn DeWitt
A young Boyceville baseball team had the unenviable task of opening its Dunn-St. Croix Conference season last week with back-to-back games against last season’s top two squads.
The Bulldogs hosted reigning D-SC champion Elk Mound Tuesday, April 8 for their conference and home opener at Evenson Field. The contest actually began well for Boyceville as the Bulldogs took an early 3-1 lead, but the Mounder bats eventually came to life while seven errors compounded Boyceville’s already precarious situation leading to a 15-4 loss.
Things did not improve much when Boyceville traveled to Mondovi two days later to face a Buffaloes’ team that finished second in the final 2024 conference standings. The contest was scoreless through the first three and a half innings, but Mondovi broke through the scoreless deadlock with four runs in the bottom of the fourth. The host, who finished with just six hits, added five more scores in the fifth en route to a 10-0 whitewashing of the Bulldogs.
Boyceville had little time to dwell on the lopsided conference losses as they returned home to face Clear Lake the following day. The Warriors proved to be just the “get well tonic” the Bulldogs needed. Boyceville finished with 11 hits including three home runs – grand slams by Zach Hellendrung and Landyn Leslie and a three-run dinger from Carson Roemhild – in a 16-6 drubbing of Clear Lake at Evenson Field last Friday, April 11.
Boyceville, (2-3, 0-2) welcomed Durand-Arkansaw Monday and will be in Glenwood City this Thursday.
BASE HIT — Boyceville’s Carson Roemhild is shown getting a hit in the April 8 Dunn-St. Croix Conference opener at Evenson Field versus Elk Mound. The junior finished with a pair of hits in the 15-4 loss to the Mounders, the defending conference champions.
—photo by Shawn DeWitt
Elk Mound
Boyceville enjoyed an early 3-1 lead over reigning champion Elk Mound when it came to Evenson Field Tuesday, April 8 for the 2025 Dunn-St. Conference baseball opener.
But, the Mounders finally got to the Bulldogs’ starting pitcher, junior Carson Roemhild, in the top of the fourth inning as they plated five runs to take a 6-3 lead and chased Roemhild from the mound.
Elk Mound continued to score, putting another run on the score board in the fifth, three more in the sixth and another five runs in the seventh. Boyceville added its final run in the bottom of the seventh to make the final tally 15-4 in the Mounders’ favor.
Seven Bulldog errors in the final four innings certainly didn’t help.
“When it rains it pours, and from the 4th inning on it was a deluge in Boyceville,” stated Boyceville head coach Michael Roemhild. “I thought the first 3 innings we played smart baseball and we were beating a good team 3-1. Our problem was Carson got too high in the pitch count. He was pitching well, Elk Mound just had a good approach for him. After Carson came out, it was errors that did us in.”
Roemhild took the loss for Boyceville after giving up five runs on four hits in three and a third innings on the mound. He K’ed five, but walked four. Isaac Williams and Ryker Benitz relieved Roemhild. Williams gave up ten runs on seven hits and walked three in two and two-thirds inning of work. Benitz surrendered two hits and a run and had a strike out in his one inning on the mound.
Boyceville finished with nine hits led by a pair of 2-for-3 performances from Roemhild and Zach Hellendrung who hit a solo home run for the Bulldogs.
Elk Mound collected 11 hits, four of which went for extra bases, and took advantage those Bulldog errors to claim the win. Parker Rhude hit a home run and a double in five plate appearances and finished with five RBIs and scored twice to lead the Mounders.
Quentin Spehle earned the pitching victory for Elk Mound as he allowed just three hits and a run in four innings of work and recorded four strike outs without a walk.
Mondovi
Landyn Leslie started on the pitching mound for Boyceville when it played a conference game at Mondovi, Thursday, April 10.
The junior hurler threw a solid game through the first three innings as he kept the Bulldogs in a scoreless deadlock with the Buffaloes.
But, then came the fourth inning.
Mondovi put four runs on the score board in the bottom half of that inning to chase Leslie off the mound despite having surrendered just two hits to Mondovi batters.
The Buffaloes added five more runs in the fifth and a final score in the sixth to bring the game to an end with a 10-0 final tally.
“We knew we were going to have a tough schedule with Elk Mound and Mondovi back-to-back,” admitted Roemhild.
“I thought we came out and played well for four innings just like against Elk Mound,” continued Roemhild. “Landyn pitched great for three innings. We were getting runners on, but just not scoring them. Then the fourth inning hit, just like Elk Mound, we had a few errors and the wheels fell off.”
Boyceville finished with just three hits, but Mondovi only collected six. The three Bulldog hits were singles by Roemhild, Leslie and Cole Retz.
Leslie took the pitching loss despite allowing just two hits. He struck out six but walked four. Owen Konsti, Tucker Lindstrom and Lexton Benitz also pitched.
Clear Lake
Twenty-four hours after being shut out in Mondovi, Boyceville returned home and washed the sour taste of defeat out of their collective mouths with a 16-6 beat down of the visiting Warriors of Clear Lake using the long ball with three home runs including a pair of grand slams.
“This was the game we needed to right the ship,” said Coach Roemhild.
“Offensively, we came out aggressive and had some huge hits, none bigger than from Zach, Carson and Landyn.”
In the second inning, Zach Hellendrung kicked off the fireworks with the first of the Bulldogs’ two grand slams. Boycville scored six times before the innings came to an end.
In the third, Carson Roemhild sent the baseball over the fence for three of the Bulldogs’ five runs in that frame.
Then in the sixth, Landyn Leslie hit his first high school home run with the bases loaded for four runs. Boyceville added another before the inning and game ended with a 16-6 Bulldogs’ victory.
Clear Lake scored two runs each in the third, fourth and fifth innings.
Hellendrung finished with a pair of hits (the grand slam and a double) and four RBIs. Roemhild also had two hits and four RBIs. Cole Retz and Eli Weber also tallied added a pair of hits for the Bulldogs who finished with 11 in all.
Hellendrung also picked up the pitching victory. He allowed four runs on four hits with a pair of Ks and two walks in four innings on the mound. Ryker Benitz pitched the final two innings, allowing two runs on two hits with two walks.