Hermantown baseball coach Billy Tafs couldn’t stop smiling from ear to ear after Monday’s impressive, 8-3 neutral field win against Grand Rapids in Superior.
“It’s a big-time, gigantic win for us in the Lake Superior Conference and against a section (7AAA) powerhouse,” the fired-up Hawks skipper said. “We’re 2-0 against two of the best teams in our section, in what basically are early-season practices where we keep score.”
Seniors Dawson Rannow, Wyatt Carlson, Carter Gunderson and Garron Opsahl led the way for the Hawks.
Rannow, a rocket-armed lefthander and the starting pitcher, allowed one hit and one unearned run in 3 2/3 innings. He also contributed three hits, while Carlson, Gunderson and Opsahl punched out two hits apiece.
The Hawks led 4-0 and rallied late, and sophomore River Freeman picked up the pitching save.
“It was terribly cold and our pitching staff didn’t allow an earned run, and we played good defense,” said Tafs. “We’ve banged out at least 10 hits in each of our first two games.
The Hawks, who defeated host North Branch 10-6 on April 14, are scheduled to visit Proctor on Wednesday and Cloquet Thursday.
“It’s the traditional Hermantown-Proctor rivalry game and Cloquet already has two impressive wins against Denfeld and Superior,” said Tafs of the mid-week Lake Superior Conference games. “We’re mostly concerned about us -- throwing strikes, playing good defense and putting the ball in play offensively. We have a good group who are committed to getting better, who understand that doing the little things correctly is what it takes to win.”
Seniors Bruce Slygh will likely start against the Rails (1-0) and Wylee Arro against the Lumberjacks (2-1), Tafs said.
Freeman homered twice in the opener and hit the ball hard against Grand Rapids, and finished with one hit.
“River’s a baseball player, through and through, and is one of the elite players in our area,” Tafs said of the three-sport athlete, who is the team’s starting catcher and a top pitcher. “His upside in baseball is off-the-charts. He’s a legitimate Division I prospect, as he also is in hockey, a five-tool player with a great arm and a two-hole hitter for us.”