Delta County Junior Girls Win Two In Metro Detroit

TAYLOR, Mich.---So far, so good, for the Delta County Junior Girls.

The 13-and-14 year-0ld Little Leaguers pulled out a pair of wins on Friday at the state tournament in the Detroit suburb of Taylor. The combined Escanba-Gladstone team beat Beaverton, 1-0, and then topped Sault Ste. Marie, 12-2, in a six-inning game.

Gabi Salo was strong in the pitching circle, earning the win in both games. She struck out ten batters in each game, and allowed just five base hits in the doubleheader.

In the early game, Salo got into trouble against the District One champions from the Midland area. A base hit, walk, and error loaded the bases in the first inning for the Beaverton team, but Salo got the next two outs to keep it a scoreless game.

In the bottom of the first inning, Sydney Herioux got a one-out base hit. She was erased on a Maddy Griffin ground out, but there was a throwing error on the play. Griffin moved to third on a passed ball and scored on a wild pitch. That was the only run of the game.

After a few hours cooling off from the hot, humid conditions, the girls were back on the field to face Sault Ste. Marie.

The Soo had lost to Croswell-Lexington, 7-1, so the girls from the Eastern Upper Peninsula desperately needed a win to stay alive in the tournament.

But Delta County took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Natalie Hansen singled and scored on a double by Gabi Salo.

Delta County scored three more runs in the second inning on an Amber Lenards bunt single, a walk and hit-battsman, an error, and two wild pitches.

Sault Ste. Marie closed to within 4-1 in the third inning when Megan Schorack doubled and scored on a single by Bailey VanSloten.

Delta County got that run back in the fourth inning when Jenna Tardiff led off with a hit and scored on a wild pitch. Heather Bergstrom's RBI single scored another run in the fifth inning to make it a 6-1 game.

Delta County put the game away with six runs in the top of the sixth inning, as Herioux, Griffin, and Salo all had run-scoring base hits. Emilee Curtis threw five innings f0r the Sault and took the loss, with VanSloten throwing the sixth and final inning.

Delta County (2-0) will face Croswell-Lexington (1-1) in the final pool play game at 2:00 on Saturday. The game will be broadcast live on WCHT-AM (600) and rrnsports.com.

ESCANABA SENIOR GIRLS---The Escanaba Senior Girls (age 15-16) rolled to a pair of wins Friday at the state tournament in the Copper Country. Escanaba beat the host Keweeenaw team, 19-1, and then dominated Melvindale from the Detroit area, 13-0. Both games were shortened by the five-inning mercy rule. The Escanaba girls play the same two teams on Saturday, and the game times have been changed. Escanaba faces Keweenaw at 10:00 Saturday morning, and then takes on Melvindale at noon.

ESCANABA 10/11 BOYS WIN---The Escanaba 10-11 year-old boys won their first sectional playoff game on Friday, beating Marquette, 16-5, at Karl Dickson Field. It was a sloppy game, with the two teams combining f0r 17 walks and seven errors. Escanaba also had 17 base hits in the game. The two teams play again in Escanaba Saturday night at 6:00. It will be broadcast live on WCHT-AM (600) and www.rrnsports.com.

JUNIOR BOYS TOURNAMENTS---The 13-14 year-old Junior Baseball State Tournament will be held next weekend in Gladstone. Sault Ste. Marie earned a spot in the eight-team event Friday night with a sectional tournament sweep over Ishpeming in Cheboygan. The Soo won both games, 5-0 and 13-0. Meanwhile in Gladstone, the Norway Junior Boys rolled to a 15-0 win over Kingsford in a district game. Kingsford will face Escanaba 0n Saturday, with Norway playing the winner for the district title.

9-10 BOYS BASEBALL DISTRICT TOURNAMENTS---The Portage Lake Minor Boys baseball team from the Copper Country earned a spot in next week's state tournament in downstate St. Clair with a 15-3 win over Penokee Range (Ironwood) Friday evening. That was the District Eleven district final. Meanwhile, in the southern U.P., the district finals were held in Gladstone. Kingsford eliminated Gladstone, 15-5, in four innings. In the winners bracket, Escanaba dominated Iron Mountain North, 12-1, to advance to the district title game. Kingsford and Iron Mountain will play Saturday.

MAJOR BOYS DISTRICT FINALS AT MARION PARK---The Norway Major Boys (age 11-12) advanced to the District Ten championship game Friday with a 10-0 win over the Tri-County All-Stars at Marion Park. Earlier in the evening, Iron Mountain North eliminated Gladstone, 14-4. Iron Mountain takes on Tri-County on Saturday, with Norway hosting the winner on Sunday in the district championship game.

9-10 GIRLS DISTRICT TITLE GAME SET---The Norway Minor Softball All-Stars (age 9-10) stayed alive in the district tournament on Friday, beating the Kingsford All-Stars, 19-6, at Marion Park. Norway will now face Escanaba in the district title game.