A total of 37 hits, including 11 for extra bases, helped the Park Rapids baseball team outscore three opponents by a 35-5 margin as the Panthers improved to 8-1 on the season.
Park Rapids improved to 3-1 in Mid-State Conference play by sweeping a doubleheader against Wadena-Deer Creek Tuesday at Wadena. The Panthers won the opener 6-2 before completing the sweep with a 17-3 five-inning victory in the second game.
Mark Juberian's team tuned up for that doubleheader sweep with a 12-0 six-inning victory over Walker-Hackensack-Akeley at Akeley last Friday.
In the first game against W-DC, Tom Juberian's two-run homer in the first inning gave Park Rapids a 2-0 lead. A double by Curtis Tolle and a single by Chris Bruhn set up a two-run single by Juberian to extend the lead to 4-0 in the third. Brandon Gartner and Doug Haas scored the Panthers' final two runs in the fourth.
Grant Dierkhising allowed two runs on four hits over the first four innings for the win while Gartner allowed only one hit over the final three innings for the save. Juberian went 2 for 4 with four RBI to lead the offense.
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Dierkhising went 3 for 4 with three RBI to lead a 15-hit attack as the Panthers rolled to a 17-3 win in the second game at Wadena.
Dierkhising had an RBI single during a three-run first inning. A double by Haas and RBI singles by Tolle and Dierkhising sparked a four-run second. A double by Eli Donatelle and RBI singles by Cody Boterman and Bruhn keyed a three-run third. A pair of two-run doubles by Dylan Walsh and Lehrke and an RBI double by Dierkhising were the key hits in a six-run fourth. Kevin Vaade-land's RBI double concluded the scoring in the fifth.
Donatelle allowed one run on three hits over four innings for the win.
(Game 1)
Park Rapids 202 200 0......6 6 1
W-DC 001 100 0......2 5 0
PLAYER AB R H RBI
Haas 4 1 1 0
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Tolle 3 1 1 0
Bruhn 3 2 1 1
Juberian 4 1 2 4
Dierkhising 3 0 0 0
Lehrke 3 0 1 0
Blanchard 3 0 0 0
Boterman 0 0 0 0
Olson 1 0 0 0
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Donatelle 1 0 0 0
Gartner 2 1 0 0
Totals 27 6 6 5
Dierkhising (4IP, 2ER, 4H, 1BB, 4K), Gartner (3IP, 0R, 1H, 2BB, 1K) and Lehrke. W-Dierkhising, 2-0. Sv-Gartner. 2B: Tolle 1, Lehrke 1. HR: Juberian 1. SB: Haas 1, Bruhn 2, Gartner 1.
(Game 2)
Park Rapids 343 61 ....17 15 3
W-DC 001 02......3 6 4
PLAYER AB R H RBI
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Tolle 1 1 1 1
Vaadeland 2 0 1 1
Lehrke 4 4 1 3
Juberian 2 1 0 2
Bruhn 3 3 2 2
Dierkhising 4 0 3 3
Gartner 2 0 1 0
Blanchard 3 1 1 0
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Donatelle 4 2 2 0
Boterman 2 1 1 1
Walsh 2 1 1 2
Haas 2 1 1 0
Peterson 1 2 0 0
Totals 32 17 15 15
Donatelle (4IP, 1ER, 3H, 2BB, 5K), Gartner (1IP, 2R, 1ER, 3H, 1BB, 1K) and Tolle. W-Donatelle, 2-0. 2B: Vaadeland 1, Lehrke 1, Bruhn 1, Dierkhising 1, Donatelle 1, Walsh 1, Haas 1. SB: Tolle 1, Lehrke 2, Juberian 1, Bruhn 2, Dierkhising 1, Boterman 1, Haas 1.
Panthers pound Wolves
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Dierkhising went 3 for 4 with three RBI and combined with two other pitchers to throw a shutout as the Panthers broke open a tie game by scoring once in the fourth, five times in the fifth and six times in the sixth against W-H-A.
Singles by Bruhn, Dierkhising and Donatelle led to the run in the fourth. Singles by Walsh and Lehrke, an RBI single by Juberian, and two-run singles by Dierkhising and Justin Peterson sparked the five-run fifth. Singles by Boterman, Haas and Juberian, a two-run triple by Tolle and an RBI single by Bruhn sparked the six-run sixth.
Kyle Blanchard allowed three hits over the first four innings for the win before Lehrke and Dierkhising finished up.
Park Rapids 000 156 ......12 16 1
W-H-A 000 000 ........0 5 3
PLAYER AB R H RBI
Haas 4 1 3 3
Lehrke 4 1 1 0
Juberian 4 2 2 1
Blanchard 2 0 0 0
Tolle 1 2 1 2
Bruhn 4 2 2 1
Dierkhising 4 2 3 3
Donatelle 2 0 1 1
Peterson 1 0 1 2
Gartner 2 0 0 0
Vaadeland 2 0 0 1
Walsh 2 1 1 0
Boterman 2 1 1 0
Totals 34 12 16 14
Blanchard (4IP, 0R, 3H, 0BB, 3K), Lehrke (1IP, 0R, 1H, 0BB, 0K), Dierkhising (1IP, 0R, 1H, 1BB, 0K) and Lehrke, Tolle (5). W-Blanchard, 1-0. 3B: Tolle 1. SB: Haas 2, Dierkhising 2, Boterman 1.
