Twins cap off week with walk-off wins

The Twins found their groove last week, notching four big wins.

The team pulled off huge blowouts, as well as close wins, over the Libby Loggers and Kalispell Lakers.

On Tuesday Glacier traveled to Libby, where they trounced the Loggers 9-1.

Glacier got off to a slow start, scoring only a pair of runs through the first four innings before racking up three runs in the fifth to put them ahead 5-0.

An explosive eighth inning added four runs and put them ahead for good in the game, with Austyn Andrachick, Cade Morgan, Payton Davisson and Devin Beale all driving in runs.

Davisson doubled to score another run in the first inning.

Zach Veneman picked up the win on the mound, striking out nine and allowing just three hits in six innings.

As a team, the Twins tallied eight hits to Libby’s four.

Then on Thursday the Twins got the bats going again in a dominant 16-1 beatdown of the Lakers A squad.

Glacier didn’t hold back early, racking up five runs in the first inning and another three in the second.

Their only other scoring inning was a fruitful one, with eight total runs coming in the fourth.

Veneman racked up for RBIs on the day.

Stevyn Andrachick was solid on the mound in two innings, striking out two, walking one and allowing no runs for the win.

The team totaled 10 hits on the game, as well as two stolen bases and no errors.

Head coach Kevin Slaybaugh said the Lakers game was a solid outing for his team all around.

“In the Kalispell game we played really well. We really hit that game and pitched pretty well, we just didn’t make any mistakes,” he said.

Then on Sunday the Twins faced off against the Loggers again in a doubleheader, coming away with two walkoff wins, both by a 5-4 score.

In the first game, the Loggers evened things out with a two-run third inning to bring the score to 2-2.

Glacier answered in the fifth, which was matched by another pair of runs by Libby in the seventh to knot things up at 4 apiece.

In the eighth, with a runner in scoring position, Veneman singled on a 1-2 count to drive home the winning run for the Twins.

Jacob Polumbus got the win on the mound in that game, allowing two hits and two runs over three innings and striking out one.

As a team, the Twins racked up 10 hits, and Morgan went 3-4 at the plate.

Game two had a similar ending, but the Twins got there in a different way.

After giving up a Libby run in each of the third and fourth innings, Glacier overcame a slow offensive start with four runs in the sixth to take a 4-2 lead. Austyn Andrachick, Polumbus and Davisson all drove in runs during that inning.

Libby fought back, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the seventh to set up another tie-game situation with a chance for the Twins to seal the deal.

This time, however, it was a walk-off error. Jack Price hit a hard ground ball which couldn’t be handled by the Loggers’ shortstop, scoring Stevyn Andrachick for the win. Andrachick previously was walked and the following three at-bats resulted in errors by the Loggers.

On the mound, Mason Peters struck out three in four innings.

While previous games against Libby hadn’t been as close, Slaybaugh said he was impressed by the Loggers over the weekend.

“Libby surprised us by being that tough. They had two or three guys that could pitch and they hung with us all day, and I gotta give them all the credit in the world,” he said. “Our pitchers walked a few more guys than we’d like, and we didn’t swing the sticks like we normally do, but we showed grit and determination in hanging in there until things went our way.”

The Twins will get two more looks at the Lakers A squad this week, playing in Kalispell on Wednesday at 6 p.m. and at home on Thursday at 6 p.m.

Then on Sunday they’ll head south to face off against the Bitterroot Bucs A team in a pair of seven-inning games. On Tuesday they’ll host the Mission Valley Mariners A squad for a doubleheader, starting at 5 p.m.

This will be the first time the team gets a crack at the Bucs, and Slaybaugh said he’s expecting it to be a good outing.

“Last season they were young, but they were pretty good. We expect them to be pretty top notch in the conference. It’ll be a good game for us to check ourselves and see where we’re at,” he said.