Successful Senior Night for SLP Orioles

 Wednesday night was Senior Night for the St. Louis Park Orioles and it turned out to be a success as the Orioles came back from a four run deficit to beat the Orono Spartans 10-6 at Derrick Keller field at Dakota Park.  

Both teams were scoreless through the first two innings.  The Spartans would break through with four runs in the top of the third, starting with Parker Lewin's RBI single that scored Brady McPherson.  Orono would tack on three more on a home run by Oliver Stevenson over the left field fence.  

The lead was short-lived for the Spartans as the Orioles sent ten batters to the plate in the bottom of the fourth.  Stefano Giovannelli hit into a force play that scored Ben Farley and Giovannelli crossed the plate on a throwing error by Orono pitcher Marco Sipila.  As the old Metrodome scoreboard would say "Walks will haunt!"  And walks did haunt Sipila as he gave up three straight walks.  Brady Walsh, celebrating his 18th birthday, would make it happier with a bases clearing double to put St. Louis Park ahead 5-4.  

Once again, the Orioles would bat around in the bottom of the fifth and they would add three more runs to their ledger.  The first came on an RBI single from Giovannelli that scored Kristofer Hokenson.  Andruw Vela reached base on an error by Spartan second baseman Charlie Larson that scored Giovannelli and Vela came home on a wild pitch.

St. Louis Park would add two more runs in the bottom of the sixth as they took advantage of Orono's erratic pitching.  Hokenson and Giovannelli tallied on wild pitches and walks continued to plague the Spartans.  Adding up the number of walks from Sipila and the two Orono relievers Jake Vanyo and Nash Tichy, the Spartans would walk a total of 11 batters.  

There would be a little bit of life for the Spartans in the top of the seventh that started with Larson being hit by a pitch and a two run homer from Sipila.  But there would be no comeback for Orono when Henry Odens, who relieved Brady Truitt struck out Stevenson and got Josh DeLange to fly out to the left fielder Stanley Regguinti to end the game.  

The Orioles improved their record to 11-7 and will head to Benilde-St. Margaret's on Friday, May 20 to face the Red Knights at 7 PM.  The Spartans fell to 5-7 and return to action on Tuesday, May 24 as the battle the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars at 7 PM at Dred Scott Field.