By John Rittenhouse
The Luverne baseball team played its way to a split during a Southwest Conference double-header against Jackson County Central in Luverne Tuesday.
The Cardinals dropped a disappointing two-run decision to the Huskies in the opener before rolling to an 11-run win in the finale.
Luverne ended the day with a 4-5 overall record and a 3-3 mark in the SWC. The Cards play a double-header in Marshall tonight and two games at the Redwood Falls Tournament Saturday before hosting Redwood Valley for two games Tuesday.
JCC 7, Luverne 5
The Cardinals let a four-run lead slip away during a discouraging two-run loss to JCC in the first game of Tuesday's twin bill.
Luverne took a 5-1 lead in the first three innings, but the Huskies rallied to score the game's final six runs to steal a potential win away from the Cards.
JCC started the comeback by scoring once in the top of the fourth inning before knotting the game at five with a three-run sixth inning. The Huskies plated two more runs in the top of the seventh to complete the rally.
Luverne got off to a good start by plating four runs in the bottom of the first.
Brad Walgrave doubled home two runs in the frame, and Mark Huiskes added a sacrifice fly. Another counter scored on an error.
JCC scored in the top of the second to make it a 4-1 game before Ben Winkels singled and scored on Walgrave's ground out in the third to make it a 5-1 game.
Jon Jarchow went the distance on the hill and took the loss for LHS. He yielded eight hits and seven walks.
Box score AB R H BI
Fick 3 1 1 0
Sandbulte 4 1 0 0
Jarchow 4 1 0 0
Winkels 4 2 2 0
Huiskes 3 0 0 1
Walgrave 4 0 1 3
Fisher 2 0 1 0
Bouwman 3 0 0 0
Iveland 2 0 0 0
Luverne 14, JCC 3
The Cardinals gained a split of the twin bill when they rolled to an 11-run win over the Huskies in Game 2.
The game was tied at three when JCC plated a single run in the bottom of the fifth inning, but Luverne erupted for five runs in the sixth inning and six runs in the seventh to win handily.
Tony Sandbulte put the Cardinals in front to stay when he singled home the first of five runs in the top of the sixth.
Walgrave doubled home two counters, James Fisher supplied an RBI double and Winkels added an RBI single to the rally.
Luverne put the game out of reach with its seven-run seventh inning.
Jarchow doubled home two runs and Tom Frey singled home a pair of counters. Sandbulte added an RBI single, and another run scored on an error.
Huiskes picked up the pitching win by working the first six innings. He allowed three runs and seven hits. Fisher pitched a scoreless seventh inning.
Box score AB R H BI
Fick 5 2 4 0
Sandbulte 3 3 2 2
Jarchow 4 1 2 2
Winkels 4 3 1 2
Huiskes 4 2 1 1
Walgrave 4 1 1 2
Fisher 5 0 3 2
Bouwman 3 0 1 0
Frey 2 0 1 2
Iveland 2 2 1 0
Schmidt 1 0 0 0