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Dragons close in on baseball crown

By John RittenhouseThe Adrian baseball team moved within one win of wrapping up at least a share of the Red Rock Conference title by toppling two league foes.The Dragons posted a two-run win over Southwest United in Heron Lake Friday before besting Mountain Lake-Butterfield-Odin by four runs in Adrian Tuesday.Adrian also played at the Windom Invitational Tournament Saturday, going 1-1 and placing second.The 10-7 Dragons play in Edgerton today and Luverne Monday. Adrian hosts Pipestone Friday.Adrian 10, ML-B-O 6A seven-run second inning carried the Dragons to a four-run win over the Wolverines in Adrian Tuesday.The seven-run outburst, which featured a three-run triple by Nick Weidert and a two-run single from John Archer, gave the hosts a lead they would never relinquish.Glen Kruger, who led AHS with three hits in the game, and Brandon Diekmann added RBI doubles during the seven-run second inning.ML-B-O trimmed the difference to two runs twice (7-5 and 8-6), but the Wolverines couldn’t recover from Adrian’s big second inning.Kruger singled and scored on a passed ball in the fourth inning and picked up an RBI for a fielder’s choice when AHS scored two runs in the sixth. Diekmann added a sacrifice fly to the cause in the sixth.David Hoffer pitched seven innings to pick up the win. He walked five batters and surrendered 11 hits.Hoffer, Weidert, Archer and Cody Kontz slapped two hits each.Windom tourneyThe Dragons went 1-1 and placed second during Saturday’s four-team tournament in Windom.Adrian advanced to the championship game by defeating St. James 10-6 in Game 1. Windom nipped AHS 7-6 in eight innings during the title tilt.A seven-run third inning set the stage for Adrian’s four-run victory over the Saints in the opener.The score was knotted at two before the seven-run eruption, which was highlighted by a two-run single by Diekmann.Archer tossed three and two-thirds innings of four-run, seven-hit ball to pick up the win for AHS. Cody Kontz worked the final three and one-third innings to earn a save. He allowed two runs and two hits.Diekmann led the Dragons with two hits and four RBIs against SJ. Kruger drove in two runs with two hits.Windom pushed a run across the plate in the bottom of the eighth inning to edge the Dragons 7-6 in the championship game.Adrian, which led 2-0 early, found itself facing a 6-5 deficit before knotting the score at six in the top of the seventh. Kontz walked and scored on Levi Bullerman’s sacrifice fly to force extra innings.Hoffer tossed the first two and one-third innings for AHS, surrendering four runs and four hits. Diekmann pitched five innings of relief and took the loss. He allowed four hits and three runs.Hoffer led the Dragons at the plate with three hits. Bullerman drove in three runs and collected two safeties. Diekmann and Joel Hoffman slapped two hits each.Adrian 2, SWU 0A strong pitching performance by Will Lutmer carried the Dragons to a two-run, nine-inning win over Southwest United in Heron Lake Friday.Lutmer pitched a nine-inning shutout for AHS, limiting the Wildcats to four hits and one walk during a five-strikeout effort.Adrian scored the game-winning runs in the top of the ninth.Diekmann ignited the rally with a lead-off double. Kruger chased home the game’s first run with a double before scoring the second run when Weidert bounced into a fielder’s choice.

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