MINDEN – The Holdrege First State Bank Seniors fought for a 5-3 advantage entering the bottom of the final inning in their opening contest of the B6 Area Tournament, but gave up three runs in the final moments to allow Doniphan-Trumbull to escape with a 6-3 victory.
Holdrege came into the contest at 5-15 on the season, having improved since the beginning of their season to sit seeded at #6 in the area tournament. Doniphan-Trumbull sat at 5-5 and was placed #3 overall.
The contest began with the Cardinals taking the infield and downing Holdrege quickly. Doniphan-Trumbull then followed the bottom of the first with a two score advantage after Keithann Stafford and Ian Osler scored to give the Cardinals the early 2-0 advantage.
Holdrege would rally as Trey Weaver led off the order and scored after a trip around the bases following walks by Dylan Haag and Matt Janssen. Holdrege would be stifled from there, and then would hold Doniphan-Trumbull at bay trailing 2-1 after two innings.
First State Bank got their bats rolling into the top of the third, as Holdrege scored from Cade Kirwan, Tate Florell, and Hudson Reed as a courtesy runner to take the lead over Doniphan-Trumbull.
Kaden Broeker took relief pitching duties from Carlos Nino de Rivera to begin a stout defensive performance through the rest of the contest. Broeker eliminated batters with ease in the bottom of the fourth through the 6th innings, only allowing one run in the bottom of the fifth after Osler was given an extra base due to a field error on a triple. Holdrege maintained their lead 4-3 entering the final inning.
Cade Kirwan again added another score at the top of the seventh inning, extending the lead 5-3. First State Bank seemed confident heading into the final moments with the lead.
The wheels fell off however, as Doniphan-Trumbull began the scoring with an inside the park home run off of errors in throwing by the Holdrege infield. Osler was then hit by a pitch after being down 0-2 in the at-bat, eventually being brought in after a double by Riley Carpenter to tie the game. The final dagger was Owen Bjerke’s hit that traveled directly over second base, allowing Carpenter to run in the final score to win the contest.
Holdrege falls to 5-16 on the season and faces Cozad in the losers bracket. The contest will be broadcasted on KUVR with pregame at 1:50 PM and first pitch at 2 PM. The winner of the contest plays the loser of the Minden and McCook matchup this evening.
Doniphan-Trumbull improves to 6-5 on the year, and faces Broken Bow today.
