Bulldogs rout Comets 11-2 in baseball season-opener

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

CHARLES CITY — Hit the ball and touch them all … that doesn’t only apply to the batter but to any runner on base.

In the top of the first inning of Charles City’s baseball home-opener against Algona, Bulldog starting pitcher Aiden Ulrich got ahold of a fastball from southpaw counterpart Sawyer Hanson and drove it over the Orange But Predominantly Black Monster in leftfield with battery mate Tate Slagle on base.

But the 2-run home run was reduced to a solo shot when it was ruled that Slagle didn’t touch the plate while coming back home.

It proved to be an insignificant mishap for the Bulldogs as Ulrich would later double in another run and Slagle would club a 3-run homer just inside the leftfield “fair pole” during a 5-run fifth inning that broke the game open on the way to an 11-2 Algona victory.

Ulrich also was the winning pitcher of record after striking out 12 and yielding three hits and six walks in five innings pitched.

Slagle himself also had a fine night throwing the ball as he gunned down two Comet baserunners straying from first base from his knees during the sixth inning.

Charles City freshman Carter Cajthaml went 2 for 2 with a pair of singles and reached base on all four of his plate appearances with two walks.

Comet leadoff hitter Kaden Buseman went 1 for 4, Jack Hanson went 1 for 3 and Colton Anderegg went 1 for 2 for the rest of Charles City’s five hits — but the Comets also committed five errors as only 7 of the 11 runs scored against them were earned.

ALGONA 11, CHARLES CITY 2

ALGONA AB R H BI CHARLES CITY AB R H BI

Tate Garman 5 2 2 1 Kaden Buseman 4 1 1 0

Tate Slagle 2 2 2 4 Carter Cajthaml 2 0 2 0

Aiden Ulrich 3 2 2 2 Holden McInroy 3 0 0 0

Logan Lentz 4 0 0 0 Jack Hanson 3 1 1 0

Reid Louwagie 3 1 1 1 Colton Andregg 2 0 1 0

Mason Ulrich 3 1 0 0 Jordan Foster 3 0 0 0

Hoyt Crouch 3 0 0 0 Luke Jacobs 3 0 0 0

Ryan Weier 0 0 0 0 Sawyer Hanson 1 0 0 0

Daniel Kemna 4 0 0 0 Logan Knapp 0 0 0 0

Dawson Eisbecker 3 2 2 0 Noah White 1 0 0 0

*Thomas Zabka 0 1 0 0 Vinny Benning 2 0 0 1

TOTALS 30 11 9 8 TOTALS 24 2 5 1

ALGONA 103 150 1 — 11

CHARLES CITY 000 100 1 — 2

LOB–ALGONA 7, CHARLES CITY 7. ERR–Logan Lentz, Carter

Cajthaml, Colton Andregg, Luke Jacobs (2), Jordan Foster.

2B–Aiden Ulrich. HR–Aiden Ulrich, Tate Slagle. HBP–Reid

Louwagie, Ryan Weier. SB–Tate Garman, Reid Louwagie, Tate

Slagle (2), Logan Lentz, Thomas Zabka, Colton Andregg, Jack

Hanson.

ALGONA IP H R ER BB SO HR

Aiden Ulrich (W) 5.00 3 1 1 6 12 0

Tate Garman 2.00 2 1 1 0 6 0

CHARLES CITY

Sawyer Hanson (L) 3.00 4 4 4 3 6 1

Jordan Foster 1.00 3 1 1 1 1 0

Colton Andregg 1.00 2 5 1 1 1 1

Noah White 2.00 0 1 1 2 5 0

WP–Colton Andregg, Sawyer Hanson (2), Noah White, Jordan

Foster. BALK–Tate Garman, Sawyer Hanson, Noah White.

SO–Aiden Ulrich, Mason Ulrich (2), Tate Garman, Dawson

Eisbecker, Reid Louwagie (2), Daniel Kemna (2), Logan Lentz,

Hoyt Crouch (3), Kaden Buseman (3), Holden McInroy (2),

Colton Andregg, Sawyer Hanson, Luke Jacobs (3), Vinny

Benning (2), Noah White, Jack Hanson (2), Jordan Foster (3).

BB–Aiden Ulrich (2), Mason Ulrich, Dawson Eisbecker, Tate

Slagle (3), Carter Cajthaml (2), Holden McInroy, Colton

Andregg, Vinny Benning, Logan Knapp.