Glenwood City baseball beats Unity for first win
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The Glenwood City baseball team is winless no more.
After dropping its first two games last week, the Hilltoppers finally put one in the win column beating the Unity Eagles 3-1 last Friday, May 21 in a non-conference road contest.
The victory, however, provided a boost to the struggling Hilltopper squad who had dropped a pair of Dunn-St. Croix games earlier in the week – falling 16-1 at home to Elk Mound last Monday, May 17 and 19-2 in Spring Valley last Thursday, May 20.
Heading into Monday’s contest at unbeaten Boyceville, Glenwood City was 1-9 in conference and overall play. The Toppers also played at Colfax Tuesday and will return home Thursday to welcome Elmwood/Plum City.
Elk Mound
Elk Mound scored early in the game with two runs in the first, four in the second, single runs in the third and fifth, then made sure there would be no comeback by Glenwood City with a bust out eight-run sixth to win 16-1 in last Monday’s contest.
While the Mounders cranked out 18 hits in the game including four doubles and a home run, the Toppers could not get their offense on track as it generated just four hits and one run, that coming in the third inning when Aaron Brigham walked and scored on Brady McCarthy’s RBI single.
Drew Olson doubled in the second, Brendan Booth and Jayden Quinn both singled to account for Glenwood City’s other three hits.
Senior Gavin Janson started on the mound for the Toppers and went five innings giving up eight runs on 11 hits including a solo homer to open the game and a walk in taking the loss. McCarthy and Marcis DeSmith came on in the sixth and surrendered eight runs on five doubles, four walks, and a hit batsman.
Avery Kaanta, who was the Mounders starting hurler and went four innings for the win, and Kaden Russo, who tossed the final two innings, both finished 3-for-4 at the plate to lead Elk Mound.
Spring Valley
A few days of rest, however, didn’t improve Glenwood City’s prospects for victory as they were handily buzzed by the Red Birds in Spring Valley, 19-2, in the team’s Thursday, May 20 meeting.
Once again, the disparity in offensive production was as glaring as the final score.
Spring Valley literally knocked the ball to all sections of the field, finishing with 23 hits, including a half dozen doubles and a triple.
Brayden Wolf led the Cardinal hitters with a 4-for-4 performance, scoring three runs and collecting two RBIs. Four other Spring Valley batters had three hits each.
The Cardinals scored all their runs in the first four inning which included three in the first, four in the second, and a half dozen in the third and fourth frames.
Glenwood City finished with just a trio of singles, one each by McCarthy, Gavin Janson, and Brendan Booth.
Both Hilltopper runs came in the top of the fourth. Noah Brite walked to start the inning, advanced on Gavin Janson’s hit, and score on an error. Janson then came around to score GC’s second and final run on an RBI sacrifice from Steven Booth.
Gavin Janson took the pitching loss for the Toppers.
Unity
After nine games, the Hilltoppers tenth proved to be the charm as it won its first game of the 2021 campaign – a 3-1 non-conference victory over the host Eagles of Unity last Friday, May 21.
Glenwood City scored single runs in the first, third and fifth innings while Unity scored its lone run in the third.
Noah Brite reached base on a fielder’s choice in the first inning and came around to score the game’s first run. Glenwood City took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third when Max Janson drew an opening walk and then scored on a fielding error.
Unity cut its deficit in half in the bottom of that third frame with a run but the Toppers added an insurance run in the fifth when Brite reached again, this time on a single, and scored to make it 3-1.
And that is how it ended.
Glenwood City finished with four hits to Unity’s six as Gavin Janson got the pitching win.