Glacier Twins edge Calgary Redbirds
The pieces are starting to come together for the Glacier Twins. After a rough 11-game skid to start the Legion baseball season, the Twins picked up their first win Sunday after edging Calgary 9-8 in the second game of a doubleheader at Memorial Field.
Glacier coach Scott Murray said the team is starting to turn the corner and become more competitive each outing.
“When we compete, the guys get a glimpse of their true potential,” Murray said. “Then it starts getting exciting.”
“We know where we can go, but we’re not close to that level yet.”
The victory didn’t come easy. Down 8-3, the Twins rallied with a four-run fourth and tied it in the fifth. Jeremy Nielsen doubled to left field in the bottom of the 8th and scored the winning run in extra innings.
“What I liked, we were down and they kept battling back,” Murray said. “We used everybody on the bench. Those guys are just tough.”
Hugh Ramlow allowed one run in 5 1/3 innings on the mound. He struck out three and gave up five hits.
Jake Slaybaugh had two RBIs to lead the team, while Bryce Wehrli went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Nielsen, back in the lineup for the first time this season, finished 3-for-5 at the plate with a double.
“To get a guy like Jeremy back makes a huge difference for us,” Murray said.
The Twins nearly rallied back in game 1 against Calgary, but came up one run short in the 7-6 loss.
Nielsen was 3-for-3 with an RBI, while Garrett Houston went 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Glacier hosts Libby today, May 16, then plays in the Canadian Days tourney in Kalispell this weekend.
Murray expects veteran Carl Talsma to be back in the line up for the weekend tourney. Slugger Peter Seymour is out with an injury.
Game 1
Calgary Redbirds 014 200 0 — 7 7 1
Glacier Twins AA 200 102 1 — 6 9 4
G. Armitage and M. Zanutto; Conner Donahue, Bryce Wehrli (3), Cory Davis (7) and Robert Simmons. W — Armitage. L — Wehrli.
CALGARY — K. Kostiuk 0-5, T. Grant 1-4, M. Bellevue 1-2, N. Bumstead 0-1, W. Johnston 2-3, A. Bishop 0-3, Zanutto 2-4, J. McPhee 0-2, T. Higa 1-4.
GLACIER — Shane Marcial 0-3, Jake Slaybaugh 0-4, Jeremy Nielsen 3-3, Garrett Houston 2-4, Wehrli 0-2, Davis 2-3, Nathan Carr 1-2, Donahue 0-3, Simmons 0-2, Nick LaGrandeur 1-1.
RBIs—Bumstead, Zanutto (2), Higa; Nielsen, Houston.
Game 2
Calgary Redbirds 431 000 00 — 8 8 3
Glacier Twins AA 201 410 01 — 9 12 0
Bumstead, Grant (7) and Zanutto; Lucas Lee, Hugh Ramlow (2), Davis (8) and Simmons, Houston (4). W — Davis. L — Grant.
CALGARY — Kostiuk 2-4, Grant 1-3, Bellevue 1-3, Bumstead 1-3, Johnston 2-4, Armitage 0-3, Zanutto 1-4, Bishop 0-3, S. McNish 0-4.
GLACIER — Marcial 1-3, Slaybaugh 1-3, Nielsen 3-5, Houston 1-4, Wehrli 2-3, Davis 0-4, Carr 3-4, Donahue 1-4, Simmons 0-1, Ramlow 0-2, LaGrandeur 0-1.
2B—Kostiuk; Nielsen; RBIs—Bellevue (2), Bumstead (2), Johnston, Zanutto, Bishop; Marcial, Slaybaugh (2), Wehrli.