Cards swept in Park River, rout Panthers at home

Two tough opponents dealt the Carrington Cardinals losses at the so-called "Baseball Day" in Park River on Friday, May 10.

The Cards fell by a 9-4 count to the host Park River/Fordville-Lankin Aggies, and two-time Class B defending title winners Thompson dispatched CHS, 9-2, in action from northeast North Dakota.

Five-run innings proved to be the fatal blows for Carrington in each instance, as they were victimized in the fifth by the Tommies and the sixth by the Aggies.

Carrington would return to the diamond last Tuesday at City Park for their home finale, and put up a seven-spot in the first inning and three more in the second to cruise to a 14-1 win over Rugby.

Grady Shipman pitched the first two innings for CHS, and gave way to Owen Hagel for the final three frames. Shipman would hit his second home run of the spring in the game, and Hagel had a good effort at the plate as well by going 2-for-3.

A makeup game with Nelson Co./Midkota was held this past Thursday in Tolna, marking the end of the regular season for Coach Wayne Shipman's team.

Ready for tourney time

It didn't seem like it at times, but with all regular season games elapsed, the Cards (9-9 overall) have done just enough to secure the top overall seed in what could be one of the most wide-open Region 3 Tournaments in memory.

Illustrating that point, the Cardinals were swept by the bottom seed in the tournament, LaMoure/Litchville-Marion, and their other loss in league play came to fourth-seeded South Border. Meanwhile, a team they defeated handily in two games, Kidder County, sits as the second seed.

It will be anybody's game in Steele beginning today (May 20), starting with the Thursday, May 16 "pigtail" game with #4 South Border and #5 L-L-M, with the winner to face the Cards at 12:30 p.m. The first game Monday will pit #2 Kidder County opposite #3 SNR at 10 a.m.