The Paynesville power surge was provided by seniors Doug Fuchs and Scott Braun. Fuchs had a two-run homer in the first inning and a three-run shot in the fifth. Braun had three hits, including a two-run home run in the third inning.
The Bulldogs broke open the game with six runs in the top of the fifth. Ben Bork reached on an error, and Curtis Christian, who had two hits and scored three runs, brought him home with a double. Braun singled, and Fuchs ripped a three-run homer.
With two outs, Adam Miller and Nate Schutz walked and, after a passed ball, scored on Chris Rohe's single.
Coach Brad Skoglund was pleased with the team's hitting and the power it showed at the plate. Power hitting, he said, is needed to beat good teams. He also thought the weather this spring helped the hitters get in shape. "Usually the pitchers are ahead because you pitch indoors, but this year we took a lot of batting practice outside," he explained.
The Bulldogs led 4-0 after three innings, with Fuchs shutting out the Cubs. "The first three innings he looked sharp, and then he started to tire," said Skoglund. "That's only natural coming into the season."
Fuchs got the win in five innings of work, allowing three earned runs and striking out six. Jon Lieser pitched two shutout innings of relief while striking out three batters.
Fuchs was helped by Bork in center field in the bottom of the fourth. Two runs had already scored when a runner tried to tag from third on a fly ball. Bork threw him out at the plate with a perfect one-hop throw, according to Skoglund.
Other than that, though, the Bulldogs' defense left Skoglund unsatisfied. The Bulldogs committed three errors in the field, leading to an unearned run.
The baseball game on Friday at Annandale was postponed because of the cold. The Bulldogs hosted LPGE last night in their home and conference opener.
They will play at Sauk Centre on Thursday and will host New London-Spicer on Friday. Next Tuesday, they will play at Melrose. These games all start at 4:30 p.m.
| Paynesville (1-0)-- | 202 | 060 | 0 | - 10 | 9 | 3 |
| Kimball-- | 000 | 220 | 0 | - 4 | 8 | 1 |
Batting: Ben Bork 0-4; Curtis Christian 2-3; Scott Braun 3-4 HR; Doug Fuchs 2-3 HR-2; Jon Lieser 1-4; Adam Miller 0-3; Nate Schutz 0-3; Chris Rohe 1-3; Justin Mackedanz 0-3;
Runs: Christian 3; Braun 2; Fuchs 2; Bork; Miller; Schutz;
RBI: Fuchs 5; Braun 2; Rohe 2; Christian;
Pitching: (ip-h-r-er-bb-k) Fuchs (W) (5-7-4-3-1-6); Lieser (2-1-0-0-0-3).