Cards get key region win over South Border

Quietly, the South Border Mustangs have inserted themselves into the conversation in the short list of Region 3 contenders one month into the high school baseball season.

Wins over LaMoure/Litchville-Marion (11-8) on April 11 and Carrington (4-0) in the second part of the Cards' doubleheader with Langdon/Edmore/Munich on Thursday, April 25, means that the regional picture has become ever more muddied.

But with a strong pitching performance by Grady Shipman in Wishek, CHS showed they can still be a threat when all the innings are in the books.

Shipman struck out 15 Mustang batters over a full seven innings on the mound, and also got the benefit of back-to-back solo home runs by Ethan Roller and Max Whitman in a 4-1 victory last Monday, April 29 to snap the team's four-game losing streak.

Just two batters got hits in the game for South Border, as Cole Nitschke had a double and scored the Mustangs' only run in the bottom of the seventh, and Colin Goettle hit a fourth-inning single.

Jake Otto had the other big hit for the Cards with a two-run single in the fifth. On the bases, Josh Bickett and Tate Wolsky scored a run apiece.

The loss dropped South Border to 3-2 and 2-2 in Region 3, while the Cards bumped their record to 3-5 and 3-1 within league play.

Back on the 25th, Carrington was in the game until the late innings with Region 4 contender L/E/M, before giving up eight runs in the final two innings in a 12-3 loss.

Boxscores from that game, along with the first South Border game, were not available at press time.

If the Cards are to grab the top seed in the upcoming Region 3 tourney in Steele starting May 16, they have some work to do this week.

Today, they travel to play LaMoure/L-M, and will play two Region 3 counters with Kidder County Tuesday in Carrington starting at 4 p.m.

Region 3 Baseball

Carrington 4, South Border 1

at Wishek

Cgtn. 000 220 0 - 4 3 2

SB 000 000 1 - 1 2 0

Grady Shipman and Corbin Clifton; Berkley Frantz, Cole Nitschke (7) and Daniel Schumacher. W - Shipman. L - Frantz.

Carrington: Shipman CG, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 15 K; Ethan Roller and Max Whitman 1-3, HR; Jake Otto 1-3, 2 RBI; Josh Bickett and Tate Wolsky one run each.

South Border: Nitschke 1-3, double, run; Colin Goettle 1-3; Frantz 6 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 6 K.