Bandits pick up first AA victory

 By Mike Brandt • Staff Writer

Belgrade earned its first win over a Class AA team Saturday night in American Legion baseball at Edward S. Medina Field. The win came in a four game series with the Glacier Twins. Pitcher Kole Mickolio went the distance for his first complete game effort after eight games played by the Bandits.

Mickolio controlled the tempo from the first pitch and his defense backed him up to notch an 6-2 win. Belgrade lost the first game 15-4. The Bandits also lost a twinbill to the Twins on Sunday, 8-4 and 19-7.

“A pitcher can only do so much,” said Mickolio. “The defense has to take over. They did a good job tonight helping me out. Kind of relieved, got out of it, got to finish strong. That’s all I was looking to do.”

Mickolio used his bread-and-butter pitch, the two seam cutter to rack up eight strike outs. He allowed just five hits in facing 31 batters and throwing 125 pitches.

“We run our number one guy out there and he does his thing and we play defense behind him, that’s the difference,” Bandits manager Brian Ayers said. “He trusted his teammates. Last week they didn’t back him.”

Mickolio put down the first four batters he faced before walking two in the second inning. He allowed his first hit on a bunt by Adam Pisk, but the Twins could only manufacture runs in the third and seventh innings.

The Bandit offense helped Mickolio as well with Phil Prickett going 2-for-3, including an inside-the-park home run in the fourth inning. CJ Berberet was also 2-for-3 with a double.

Joel Barnett took to the mound in the first game but didn’t get much help from his defense or offense.

“We didn’t play defense behind Barnett,” noted Ayers. “Two totally different out comes. Barnett didn’t do any thing different than Mickolio.”

The offense was slow to get going after the Bandits’ number three, four and five hitters didn’t start because they showed up late to the game.

“By the time they got in we were down 10 runs,” said Ayers. “They have to be here on time.”

Glacier scored eight runs in the second inning to add to its four in the first inning for a 12-0 lead. Belgrade did come back with two runs in the third, but could never get the deficit under 10.

Sunday the Bandits got back-to back doubles from Mickolio and Berberet to tie the first game at 3-all in the seventh. But the Twins scored four runs in the 10th to take an 8-4 win.

Errors were costly in the second game with Belgrade committing nine in a 19-7 loss. Belgrade had cut the deficit to 13-7 in the fourth inning, but Glacier put six runs across in the seventh to take the win.



Glacier 19, Belgrade 7

Glacier 321 700 6 - 19 16 1

Belgrade 012 400 0 - 7 7 9

John Peterson, Michael Hader, Rusty Hill, and Brad Bell. Kevin Peters, Keldon Graff, Phil Prickett, Bobby Nemeth, and CJ Layman.

GLACIER (3-1) - Brad Nielsen 1-4, Ryan Caron 2-2, Adam Pisk 1-4, Peterson 1-1, Hader 0-2, Bell 4-5, Hill 0-4, Weston Chambers 2-4, Justin Collom 1-3, Wes Bougher 1-3, Scott Yogodzinski 3-5.

BELGRADE (2-6) - Prickett 0-1, Shay Helm 0-2, Pat Freund 0-3, Nemeth 0-0, Andy Freund 1-3 (2B), Kole Mickolio 1-3, CJ Berberet 1-3, Justin Halvorson 1-2, Joel Barnett 0-0, Jeff Hoffman 0-1, Bryn Harris 1-2, LD Severson 1-1 (2B), Lane Berberet 0-1, Daniel Kristensen 0-0, Layman 0-1, Connor Schultz 1-3, Peters 0-0, Graff 0-0.



Glacier 8, Belgrade 4

Glacier 210 000 010 4 - 8 15 0

Belgrade 100 101 010 0 - 4 6 2

Yogodzinski, Bougher, Bell, and Caron. Andy Freund, Nemeth, Pat Freund, and CJ Berberet.

GLACIER (2-1) - Nielsen 4-6, Pisk 34, Peterson 1-4, Caron 0-4, Chambers 2-4, Bell 0-0, Hill 2-5, Collom 2-5, RJ Beasley 0-4, Hader 1-4, Yogodzinski 0-0, Bougher 0-0.

BELGRADE (2-5) - Peters 0-4, Kristensen 0-2, Halvorson 0-1, Jordan Prester 0-1, Andy Freund 3-4 (2B), Mickolio 2-2 (2B), Prickett 0-1, CJ Berberet 1-3 (2B), Barnett 0-4, Nemeth 0-3, Pat Freund 0-0, Hoffman 0-2, Matt Thibault 0-1, Harris 0-2, Severson 0-2.



Belgrade 6, Glacier 2

Glacier 001 000 1 - 2 5 5

Belgrade 112 200 x - 6 7 1

Collom, Beasley (4), and Caron. Mickolio and CJ Berberet.

GLACIER (1-1) - Yogodzinski 0-1, Hader 1-2, Pisk 2-4, Peterson 2-4, Hill 0-2, Nielsen 0-2, Caron 0-2, Bougher 0-2, Beasley 0-3, Collom 0-3.

BELGRADE (2-4) - Peters 1-3, Harris 0-3, Andy Freund 0-3, Mickolio 1-2, CJ Berberet 2-3 (2B), Barnett 0-2, Halvorson 0-1, Prester 0-3, Pat Freund 0-0, Prickett 2-3 (HR), Hoffman 1-3, Lane Berberet 0-0.



Glacier 15, Belgrade 4

Glacier 480 03 - 15 13 1

Belgrade 002 02 - 4 5 6

Chambers, Hader (4), and Caron. Barnett, Halvorson (3), Graff (4), Pat Freund (5), and Schultz, CJ Berberet (3).

GLACIER (1-0) - Yogodzinski 0-5, Fisk 2-4, Peterson 2-4 (2B), Hill 2-3, Nielsen 1-2, Caron 2-4, Bougher 0-3, Hader 2-4, Chambers 2-4.

BELGRADE (1-4) - Thibault 1-3, Lane Berberet 0-0, Helm 0-1, Kristensen 0-0, Nemeth 0-1, Andy Freund 0-1, Barnett 2-2 (2B), Hoffman 0-1, Mickolio 2-2 (2B), Schultz 0-0, CJ Berberet 0-3, Harris 0-2, Severson 0-1, Halvorson 0-1, Graff 0-0, Pat Freund 0-0, Prickett 0-1, Peters 0-0.