Jacks Rally Into Section Final

June 4th, 2014

Tyler Peterson-NSO

The Cloquet Lumberjacks trailed the Duluth Marshall Hilltoppers 6-1 in the 3rd inning, but the Lumberjacks continued to battle back, scoring one in the 3rd and four in the 4th to knot it up 6-6. The game would remain tied until the bottom of the 8th inning when Dylan McIvor hit a sacrifice fly to right field that allowed Gavin Takkunen to tag up from 3rd and score to give the Lumberjacks the 7-6 victory that sends them to the Section 7AA championship game.

Brandon Conklin got the victory after coming into relief in the 2nd. Conklin went 6.1 innings, allowing only one hit and zero runs while striking out 8. Gavin Takkunen led the offense by going 3-4 with a double and two runs driven in and scoring 3 runs. Nate Weets also had a nice day at the plate, racking up 3 hits.

Pierce Risdon ended up getting the loss for the Hilltoppers after pitching one-third of an inning, allowing two hits and one earned run. Jon Hansen had a strong day at the plate, getting two hits for the Hilltoppers.

The Lumberjacks will play in the Section 7AA championship game against the Aitkin Gobblers after Aitkin knocked Duluth Marshall out of the playoffs with a 1-0 victory. The Lumberjacks are now 13-5 on the year and will look for their 4th state tournament appearance on June 5th. The game will start at 5:00 PM.

Tyler Peterson can be contacted tpeterson@northlandsportsonline.com