Glen Strandberg
Sports Editor

For those who are looking for a new challenge beyond Sudoku puzzles, they may want to try figuring out the Forest Lake baseball team.

They can win a game 1-0, as they did against Mounds View on Friday, or they might go down swinging, like the 9-6 loss to Park (Cottage Grove) on May 2.

Then again, they can also throw in a 2-1 loss, which is what happened at their final road game of the year on Monday, May 7 at White Bear Lake.

The Rangers second win over Mounds View this season saw only one run, total, as Forest Lake starter Brady Banse went five innings and allowed two hits, while striking out five batters.

And since the Rangers could muster just five hits on the night, Banses’ effort was appreciated. Trip Schultz grabbed the save after getting three strikeouts of his own in two innings of work.

The steady Brent Kolbow batted a thousand in this one, going two-for-two, and also scoring the game’s only run.

He was brought home in the bottom of the sixth inning, when Drew Cremisino simply did what he does when it matters. The season is only a month old but it already feels like this was Cremisino’s fifth game-winning RBI.

PARK LOSS

Sandwiched in between a beauty of a 2-1 win over Roseville, and the 1-0 victory against Mounds View, there was the 9-6 loss to Park.

The Wolfpack scored early, getting one run in the first inning, three more in the second, and two more in the third.

This game got interesting as starter Brad Cherveny had to leave in the second as Park was building a 4-0 lead. Myles Carlson came on in relief, and was able to keep the game under control as Forest Lake made a comeback.

After three innings it was 6-1 in favor of the Wolfpack, but that lead was cut to 6-4 in the bottom of the fourth. The Rangers then made it an even 6-6 in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Christian Fogerty took the mound for Forest Lake in the top of the seventh, where Park was able to pick up three runs. When the Rangers couldn’t respond in their final at-bat, it was a 9-6 loss to a team they beat 3-2 in mid-April.

Once the hitting warmed up, a trio of sophomores —Travis Evgen, Kyle Jensen and Kyle Young — got going, as they contributed seven of the team’s 11 hits, and four of the Rangers’ RBIs.

MONDAY'S GAME

It took a grand slam by Cremisino in their first meeting for Forest Lake to knock off White Bear, and that would have been nice to see again on May 7.

The Bears had starter Matt Johnson go the whole way, and he stepped up with five strikeouts while giving up four hits.

After White Bear Lake scored once in the fourth inning and once in the fifth, the Rangers finally got on the board with their lone run in the top of sixth, but that wouldn’t be enough in another low-scoring affair.

Forest Lake (5-7, 6-8) now has nothing but home cooking, with night games against Stillwater on Wednesday, Woodbury on Friday, and Anoka on Tuesday.

Top of Page