By John Rittenhouse
The Hills Thunder ended an 11-day layoff by playing a pair of games in a four-day span.
Hills traveled to Luverne Thursday to take on the home-standing Redbirds. The Thunder kept the game close before dropping a 5-0 decision.
Hills returned to Luverne Sunday to take on Truman. Truman rallied to score three late runs and pull out a 4-3 win.
The Thunder couldn’t put together a string of hits during Thursday's game against Luverne.
Hills received one hit each from Cade and Jarud Lang, Eric and Scott Harnack, Matt Funke and Chris Putnam, but the safeties did not lead to any runs.
Luverne, on the other hand, plated five unearned runs to post a win.
Thunder pitcher Matt Wingate pitched seven innings of four-hit ball in the starting role. He walked four batters and struck out nine. Wingate took the loss after allowing three unearned runs.
Putman yielded two unearned runs when pitching one inning of relief. He surrendered two hits, one walk and fanned one batter.
Hills let a 3-1 lead slip away when it played Truman in Luverne Sunday.
Playing as the visiting team, Hills scored twice in the top of the first and added another run in the fourth to counter Truman's one-run effort in the bottom of the first.
Truman bounced back to tie the game at three with a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth before producing the game-winning counter in the seventh.
The Thunder gained an early advantage when Chris Harnack singled before scoring when Scott Harnack drilled a two-run homer.
The score was 2-1 entering the top of the third, when Hills' Cade Lang singled and scored when Justin Van Maanen slapped an RBI single.
Chad Rauk took the loss on the mound for the Thunder. He pitched six innings of three-hit, three-walk ball. Rauk fanned nine batters and was touched for four runs.
Putnam relieved Rauk in the seventh, allowing one hit and one walk while recording one strikeout.
The 0-7 Thunder host Heron Lake at noon Sunday.