Northstars' season comes to an end at state

The summer has finally come to an end for the Havre Northstars American Legion baseball club. Over the weekend at the Class A State tournament in Belgrade, the Northstars competed hard in their final games of the season.

After a loss to open the tournament, the Northstars won two straight elimination games, including a 9-3 win over the Glacier Twins on Friday night. But the season finally came to an end with a 15-5 loss to the eventual state champion Butte Miners. Even though the season ended with a loss, Havre head coach Patch Wirtzberger believes the Northstars played some of their best baseball over the weekend.

"I thought we played really well. We put together a couple of the best games we played all season right when we needed it," Wirtzberger said. "Really happy with the effort that the boys gave. Just a huge leap for the program."

The Northstars made it to the final four of the tournament after defeating the Glacier Twins, 9-3, in an elimination game Friday night. With their season on the line, the Northstars struck first in the bottom of the first. With a runner on third, Brody Nanini singled to left to drive in the run to give Havre the lead.

In the top of the second, the Twins responded to take their own lead. With two runners on early in the inning, Josiah Ruther hit a single to drive in a run to tie the game. Owen Shilling then scored on a groundout to give Glacier the lead. Ruther capped off the inning by scoring on a fielder's choice to give Glacier a 3-1 lead.

The Northstars eventually responded in the bottom of the fourth as they looked to keep their season alive. With two runners on, Ezra Pyle singled to left to drive in a run. Jevin Jenkins then scored on a wild pitch to tie the game.

Eli Cloninger kept the scoring going with a double to right to drive in a run to give Havre the lead again. Drake Berreth then drove in another pair of runs with a bunt to give Havre a 6-3 lead.

The Northstars kept it rolling in the bottom of the fifth. With a runner on second, Kale Vancampen hit an RBI triple to right to extend Havre's lead. Cloninger then brought him home with a single to stretch the lead to 8-3. After several games in the tournament where the Northstars could not get rolling, Wirtzberger believes they found their offensive rhythm against Glacier.

"After the boys settled in and really just focused on their approach, you could see the hits come," Wirtzberger said. "They started to execute the bunts and the hit and runs and all the things it takes to really put runs up against good teams."

An RBI single from Jenkins in the bottom of the sixth pushed the lead to 9-3. Even though Glacier threatened in the top of the seventh, the Northstars closed them out to win the game and keep their season alive.

The Northstars excelled on both sides of the plate against Glacier. Cloninger had a strong day at the plate as he went 3-for-4 with two RBIs. On the mound, Kale Reno pitched 6.1 innings where he allowed seven hits and three earned runs.

"He was just really good," Wirtzberger said about Reno's pitching performance. "He was in the zone early, he was using his breaking ball and was not afraid to pitch and let his defense work behind him."

But the Northstars' run came to an end with a 15-5 loss to Butte Saturday afternoon. The loss mirrored how Havre started the tournament, as the Northstars lost, 15-5, to Butte on Wednesday evening.

Just like their first meeting, the Miners got off to a strong start to take control. In the bottom of the first with a runner on, a Havre error allowed the runner to score and give Butte the lead. The Miners then hit four straight singles as a team to drive in three runs to extend the lead to 4-0.

The Miners kept it rolling in the bottom of the third. After getting on base with a single to open the inning, Rye Doherty scored on a wild pitch. Ethan Cunningham then hit a single to left to drive in another run for Butte.

Later in the inning, Kenley Leary singled to center to drive in another run. Cunningham then scored on a groundout to give Butte an 8-0 lead.

Butte continued to add onto its lead in the bottom of the fourth. With a runner on base, Zach Tierney crushed the ball for a home run to center field to give Butte a 10-0 lead. Heading to the top of the fifth, Havre now needed to score at least one run to keep the game going and the season alive.

After no hits through the first four innings, the Northstars finally found their offense in the top of the fifth. After a pair of walks to open the inning, Nanini hit a single to left to drive in a run. Trenton Maloughney followed that up with a double to center to clear the bases. A Butte error then allowed him to score to cut Havre's deficit to 10-4.

"They've just been resilient all year long and they just weren't ready to be done," Wirtzberger said about his team in the top of the fifth. "It was good to see them fight to keep their season alive but it's nothing new."

After not closing out Havre with their defense, Butte tried to do it with offense in the bottom of the fifth. After a pair of hits to start the inning, Eric Hart singled to center to clear the bases and stretch the lead to 12-4. But that was all they got in the fifth as the Northstars forced another inning.

In the top of the sixth, Theron Peterson hit an RBI single to left to cut the deficit to 12-5. But the Miners made sure to end the game in the bottom of the inning. With two runners on, Leary singled to left to drive in a run. A sacrifice fly then got another runner home. Aiden Lee then hit a single to left to drive in a run to give Butte a 15-5 lead to end the game in six innings.

The Havre Northstars wrapped up the season with a 38-23-1 record. In the postseason, they finished second in the North A District tournament and they finished in the top four of the state tournament. They won their first game at state in 17 years and it was their best finish at state since 2004. While the season ended with a loss, there was plenty to be proud of for the Northstars.

"I'm really happy with the season we had. A lot of good accomplishments," Wirtzberger said. "It just speaks to the effort of this group and the way that they came together. They really took it to a new level, and I couldn't be prouder of the guys for everything that they put into this year."

With the season over, Havre will lose seniors such as Cloninger, Maloughney and Peterson. Reno and Berreth are also seniors but are eligible to return for another year for Havre. Players that should come back for Havre next year include Nanini, Jenkins, Pyle and Vancampen. With the talent returning next summer, Wirtzberger believes the Northstars will continue their winning ways and should make some more noise in next year's postseason.

"I think the program is in a good place," Wirtzberger said. "These guys have set the example on how to do it right and how to do the little things correctly and that's huge for a very talented group that's coming up."

Havre 9, Glacier 3

GLC 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 - 3 8 1

HAV 1 0 0 5 2 1 X - 9 13 0

WP - Kale Reno

LP - Kellen Kroger

Havre Batting - Eli Cloninger 3-4, Drake Berreth 1-3, Brody Nanini 1-4, Trenton Maloughney 2-4, Theron Peterson 1-4, Jevin Jenkins 2-3, Terek Shipp 0-3, Ezra Pyle 2-2, Kale Vancampen 1-2.

Butte 15, Havre 5

HAV 0 0 0 0 4 1 X - 5 5 3

BUT 4 0 4 2 2 3 X - 15 16 1

WP - Caydance Stajcar

LP - Terek Shipp

Havre Batting - Eli CLoninger 0-2, Drake Berreth 0-2, Brody Nanini 2-3, Trenton Maloughney 1-3, Theron Peterson 1-2, Jevin Jenkins 1-4, Ezra Pyle 0-2, Conner McKay 0-3, Kale Reno 0-2.