The Baltic 14U baseball team finished their 2023 season with a sixth place finish at the 2023 South Dakota VFW State B Baseball Tournament held in Corsica Friday, July 21st through Sunday, July 23rd.
Mt Vernon/Plankinton 13, Baltic 5
Baltic had a 3-1 lead over Mt Vernon/Plankinton, the eventual state champions, after one inning of play. Mt Vernon/Plankinton, however, went ahead with a seven-run second inning. They would add three more in the top of the sixth for an 11-3 lead. Baltic got two runs in the bottom of the sixth to make the score 11-5, but Mt Vernon/Plankinton added two more runs in the top of the seventh.
Garrett Wilkenson had two hits and an RBI. Jackson Goehring added a double and an RBI. Luke Petersen finished with a single and an RBI. Ben Berg and Cale Roach each had a hit. Five pitchers combined to complete the game. They allowed 13 earned runs on a total of eight hits and 13 walks with five strikeouts. Gavin Skotvold had three of the fifth strikeouts in 1 2/3 innings pitched.
Baltic 3, Corsica-Stickney 1
The defense and pitching staff held Corsica-Stickney to just one run, which was scored in the top of the seventh. Goehring had an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning for an early 1-0 lead. He then had an RBI double and then scored on a steal of home to extend the lead to 3-0.
Goehring had two hits, one a double, and two RBIs. Roach finished with a single. Skotvold pitched all seven innings and allowed an unearned run on four hits and one walks with six strikeouts.
Clark 21, Baltic 6
Clark belted out 14 runs in the bottom of the first inning on their way to winning the consolation championship game. Baltic had a run in the top of the first and then had a four-run second. Clark added three more runs in the bottom of the second. After two innings of play, Clark led 17-5. Baltic would get one more run in the third, while Clark scored four more times to end the game on the 15-run rule.
Roach had two singles and two RBIs. Berg also had two hits with an RBI. Goehring finished with a double and an RBI. Wilkenson had a hit, and Braeden Breece had an RBI. Petersen pitched 1 2/3 innings and allowed seven earned runs on seven hits and three walks. Goehring pitched 2/3 of an inning and allowed six runs, five earned, on four hits and four walks with one strikeout. Hansen pitched 1/3 of an inning and allowed eight runs, only one earned, on six hits.
