St. Michael-Albertville dodged wind, rain and even some heat over the Memorial Day holiday en route to the Section 8AAA baseball semifinals, drubbing Becker 17-5 in their opening round of tournament action.
For the Knights, it puts manager Paul Schumm and the squad a game away from the team’s first appearance in the Section 8-3A championship game, something the Knights haven’t seen in five years.
Tyler Berg led the way for STMA Monday afternoon, a game that was delayed two hours after due to wind, rain and cold that settled into the area Monday around the lunch hour. The Knights provided plenty of fireworks, as Berg launched a 3-run homer and pitched a complete game to earn the win.
Berg has been the team’s horse all season, pitching more than 50 innings and striking out 46 batters in eight regular season appearances. He’s now gone the full distance in all nine games pitched, posting a record of 8-1.
The squad’s other experienced starter is Jaylen Hakes, who is 3-2 in five appearances with an ERA under 3.00. Considering the Knights put up more than 10 runs per game on average, that’s more than enough cushion for a team looking to get back to the state tournament for the first time since the knocked off Eden Prairie en route to the 2009 championship.
Photos from Monday’s Section 8-3A quarterfinal, via the STMA Baseball Facebook page:
Section 8AAAA Playoffs (1st round)
Posted by St. Michael-Albertville Knights Baseball on Tuesday, May 26, 2015
At the plate, Schumm’s team is led by University of Minnesota signee Jordan Joseph, who is batting an eye-popping .500 on the season (not including the tournament outing). JJ has 26 hits and seven doubles, both team highs, and is second on the team in RBI with 22.
Berg, meanwhile, leads the team with five home runs and had 28 RBI during the regular season to lead the Knights offense.
STMA, now 17-5 on the season, has fully recovered from a stretch that saw them lose three games by a combined four runs, including their only shutout of the season back in mid-May. Since those four games, the Knights have 45 runs in a four-game win streak that has seen them give up just 10.
“We’ve always been a program that’s relied on clutch hitting and then pitching and defense,” Schumm told NWCT last season. “We don’t hit a lot of long balls, so we have to play consistent baseball.”
This year, that formula’s been working, and will be put to the test Thursday afternoon at 5 p.m. at Middle School West when the boys in blue host Brainerd (14-7, 8-6 in Section 8AAA). The Knights look to have the upper hand, holding not only the No. 1 seed but an edge in common opponents. Brainerd struggled with Section rivals like Moorhead and Monticello. The Knights walloped the Spuds in a pair of games here in St. Michael last month.