The Remsen St. Mary’s baseball team dropped an intense 1-0 pitcher’s duel in the Class 1A State quarterfinal round to North Linn on Monday night in Carroll.
The game was very evenly matched from a statistical standpoint. Each side had the same amount of hits and strikeouts, but head coach Dean Harpenau says North Linn had a more timely hit than the Hawks, and it ended up being the difference.
In a pitcher’s duel with such a low score, the little things become that much more magnified. Under the magnifying glass in this game was a leadoff walk in the fifth inning that later came around to score on the aforementioned timely hit. Coach Harpenau says his guys know that leadoff walks can be killer.
Dalton Klein did his best to keep the Hawks in it from a pitching perspective. Klein allowed five hits, one run, one walk, and struck out 10 over his seven innings on the mound. Klein says he relied on his experience at state to carry him through his outing.
For such a young team, making it to state and being in the game to the very end is a very impressive accomplishment. Coach Harpenau is going to use this game as a learning experience for the young group to highlight the small things that add up in the end.
Remsen St. Mary’s concludes the baseball season with a 21-7 record and conclude their 11th-consecutive state tournament appearance. Klein says he and the guys are proud to have proved so many people wrong and continue the success the program has come to know.
Coach Harpenau says it takes a village to support a program that is this successful year in and year out.
North Linn advances to the semifinal round with a 25-6 record and will take on the upset-minded eighth seed Moravia on Wednesday at 4:30 PM.
