DEVILS LAKE — There’s no sugarcoating it: It’s been a struggle for the Lake Region State College baseball team.
As recently as April 7, it looked like the Royals might be turning a corner. They were fresh off their first home series of the season, where they won three out of four against the North Dakota State University club team.
But it’s been a downhill slide since then. After losing both games of a doubleheader to Bismarck State College on Wednesday, they’ve now lost 10 in a row, bringing their overall record to 5-21 and conference record to 0-12.
“Rome doesn’t get built in a day, so to speak,” first-year head coach Laurence Arango said. “Building a culture, which is the most important thing. Sometimes when you come into a program, and rebuilding a program, it takes time. It takes patience to really get your culture and the style of ball you want to play. So we’ve had our ups and downs here — certainly our downs over this losing streak.”
They had their work cut out for them against the Mystics. BSC (23-5, 15-3) entered Wednesday with the fewest losses of any team in the Mon-Dak Athletic Conference.
After losing 10-2 in the first game, the Royals had a 6-1 lead in the nightcap. But they lost anyway, allowing six unanswered runs and falling 7-6.
“They still don’t know how to win yet,” Arango said. “But that comes with experience, and being in these kind of games. And I’m optimistic about the future.”
One of the hallmarks of the Royals’ success in their series win over the NDSU club team was their fundamentals. But Wednesday’s first game was a different story. Pitcher Lane Kinsella committed a balk in the second inning to bring in the first run. Then a second run scored on a routine fly ball that Marshel Herman dropped in left field. The inning nearly spiraled with back-to-back walks, but Kinsella managed to strand the bases loaded.
Herman was hit by a pitch to start the bottom of the second, but he was promptly picked off.
Third baseman Jacob Warnke made a throwing error in the top of the third. A double put runners in scoring position, and an infield popup dropped for a “single” to bring in a run. Another run scored on a lackadaisical throwing error by the catcher, and it was 4-0.
“We certainly have to clean up our defense,” Arango said. “Our defense has let us down quite a bit over the last several games during this losing streak.”
Kinsella showcased a solid curveball, though he had trouble getting calls on the inside part of the plate. After surrendering a solo shot in the fourth and hitting a batter, he was pulled. His inherited runner scored on a single against Jacob Ripplinger for BSC’s sixth run of the game.
The Royals got one back in the third on Tyler Kleinjan’s RBI double. But they couldn’t take advantage of a pair of two-out baserunners in the fourth, one of whom was Hunter Brodina after his second hit of the game.
Ripplinger allowed another solo homer in each of the fifth and sixth innings. A pair of doubles added two more in the sixth, making it a 10-1 game.
LRSC got one back on a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the sixth after an error and hits by Ripplinger and Brady Omdahl. That was all, though, as it fell 10-2 in Game 1.
Brodina got the start on the mound for Game 2. The last time he’d pitched on this field, he threw 8 1/3 scoreless innings. The Mystics struck against him in the second inning, getting an RBI double after a walk and an error. Brodina struck out the final two batters of the frame.
The Royals finally had something go their way in the bottom of the second, as Herman tied the game on a solo shot to left-center. Ripplinger drew a two-out walk, then stole second base and scored on a clutch single by Ethan Weir.
LRSC led, 2-1.
BSC hit a one-out double in the third, but Brodina once again struck out the next two. And the offense kept grinding out at-bats in the bottom half. Hugh Montgomery led off with a double, advanced to third on a bunt, then scored on a wild pitch.
The Mystics were nearly out of the inning, but a wild throwing error by the second baseman allowed two more runs to come in. Another throwing error, this time by the third baseman, kept the frame going. Ripplinger got caught in a rundown leaning too far off first base, but a run scored during the sequence. It was a four-run frame for the Royals and an ugly showing for the Mystics, putting LRSC ahead 6-1.
Ripplinger made a leadoff error in the fifth, which led to a run on a two-out double. Brodina wasn’t phased, striking out two more in the inning.
“He’s just a great competitor,” Arango said of Brodina. “He’s a young man that really wants to win. He’s a winner. He’s got a great mindset.”
But the Mystics came out hitting the ball hard in the sixth. The second batter of the frame smacked a two-run homer, cutting LRSC’s lead to 6-4. After two more consecutive singles, Brodina’s evening came to an end.
He struck out eight in five really good innings, but BSC got to him in the sixth.
The Mystics loaded the bases on a comebacker that Warnke — the new pitcher — couldn’t handle. He hit a batter to load the bases with one out, and BSC tied the game on a sacrifice fly. Warnke stranded the bases loaded, but it was still a four-run inning, and the Royals lost the lead they’d established early on.
Any attempt to regain the momentum was short-lived. Warnke surrendered a solo shot in the top of the seventh to put the Mystics up 7-6, and the Royals’ offense went down one-two-three in the final frame.
The loss carried some extra venom in its sting, considering that LRSC led for the majority of the game.
“We’ve had a couple of these really tough losses during the long streak,” Arango said. “And I tell them they just have to learn from it. Learn, and keep working. Keep battling. Because that’s how you build the mental toughness. You can’t just go in the tank and give up.”
The Royals will play a doubleheader against the University of North Dakota club team on Friday at 3:30 p.m.
