West Bend shows discipline at plate

Date: July 17, 2013

LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL — JUNIOR LEAGUE DISTRICT POOL-PLAY: WEST BEND 13, GLENDALE 9

West Bend shows discipline at plate

Team scores 12 unanswered runs

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN
Daily News Sports Editor

West Bend manager Michael Fleischman and his team are feeling a lot better now.
West Bend came from behind and defeated Glendale, 13-9, in the first pool-play game of the Wisconsin Little League District 1 tournament Tuesday inWest Bend.
After three innings, West Bend trailed 9-1.
“I wasn’t feeling really good in the third or fourth innings,” Fleischman said. “I’m feeling really good right now.”
Plate discipline was the biggest factor as to how West Bend came back and eventually pulled out the game. And for 13- and 14-year-olds to have the patience they showed, Fleischman couldn’t help but be impressed.
“When you’re 13 years old it’s a tough thing to do,” he said about his team’s discipline.
West Bend methodically chipped away at Glendale’s lead, inning after inning.
After the third inning, West Bend scored 12 runs on just six hits, but had nine walks. The team scored three runs on walks with the bases loaded in that span.
Through the first three innings, West Bend had four hits and just one walk.
“The key to this game was good plate discipline,” Fleischman said.
While he wasn’t happy with the start of the game, Fleischman knew his team was still in it, despite trailing by eight runs. And with good reason.
This group of players won the state championship as 10-year-olds and advanced to the state semifinal last year as 12-year-olds.
“This team is always in it no matter what because there are a bunch of good hitters on this team,” Fleischman said. “What we can’t do is get our heads down and they did a great job of keeping their heads up.”
West Bend’s first two pitchers — Cole Surprenant and Kyle Yochem — struggled a bit. But Ethan Wedemeyer was there to help, along with a potent offense.
Wedemeyer pitched 2 2/3 innings, allowing just two runs on five hits, walked two and struck out two.
West Bend started to chip at the lead with a four-run top of the fourth inning.
Joe Michels, who had two hits, along with Yochem, Bennett Schmidt and Peyton Janto all scored. Wedemeyer drew a bases-loaded walk.
West Bend took the lead in the fifth at 10-9, scoring five runs. Canon Melstrand and Jackson Jommen each had RBI hits. Jommen had an RBI double that gave West Bend the lead.
The defense also chipped in on the comeback.
In the fourth inning with runners on first and second, Will Egan hit a line drive at Wedemeyer, who stuck out his glove and caught the ball. Then, from his rear end, Wedemeyer threw a strike to second base for a double play.
Then in the fifth, West Bend cut down a runner at home plate. Michael Vecitis hit a long fly ball to deep center field and Melstrand was unable to make the catch. Melstrand got up and fired a strong throw to Yochem who turned and fired a strong relay throw to Nathan Fleischman at home plate to get the runner. Had the run scored, it would’ve tied the game.
“I heard a couple of parents say, ‘Don’t throw it. Don’t throw it,’” Michael Fleischman said.
Glendale had just three baserunners the rest of the game.
“These guys have been playing together for a long time,” Fleischman said. “Everybody knows what everybody can do. They have a lot of confidence in each other and it says a lot about the team.”
West Bend will continue the district tournament at 6 p.m. today against Grafton. The top-two teams from the two pools advance to the championship bracket. The semifinals and final will be Saturday and Sunday, hosted by James Beckum Little League in Milwaukee.

WEST BEND 13, GLENDALE 9
West Bend..............001 452 1 — 13 10 1
Glendale..................054 000 0 — 9 9 4
Pitchers — WB: Cole Surprenant (IP, H, 4R, 2BB), Kyle Yochem (1 1/3IP, 3H, 3R, 2BB, K), Ethan Wedemeyer (W, 2 2/3IP, 5H, 2R, 2BB, 2K), Jackson Jommen (SV, 2IP, 2K, BB); GL: Eli Winter (3 1/3IP, 5H, 5R, 4BB, K), Andrew Eidenberger (L, IP, 2H, 5R, 3BB, K), Michael Vecitis (1 2/3IP, 3H, 3R, 2BB, K), Will Egan (IP, BB, 2K).
West Bend hitters — Karl Lemke 2-3 (2 BB, 2B, RBI), Cole Surprenant 1-2, Canon Melstrand 1-3 (RBI), Jackson Jommen 1-4 (RBI), Nathan Fleischman 1-3 (2B, 2 BB), Joe Michels 2-3 (RBI), Carter Mayer 1-1 (2B), Bennett Schmidt 1-2.