Heart River splits with Nighthawks in Saturday twin-bill

May 12—BELFIELD — With a big, 13-6 win in Game 2 of the Saturday doubleheader at the Bellfield ballfield, Heart River split the series and improved to 5-15 with their Region VIII rivals, while the Nighthawks also are hovering at sub-.500 with a 6-11 record on the 2024 season. The two teams are set to square off against each other once more to close out the schedule on Tuesday, May 14 in a twin-bill at Hettinger-Scranton.

Both teams held each-other scoreless through the first three innings, as Heart River hurler Luke Obrigewitsch and Hettinger-Scranton senior starter Tanner Blackwell went toe-to-toe and pitch-for-pitch. Obrigewitsch got the better of the statistical battle with 9 strikeouts while giving up only 3 walks and 5 hits, but the Nighthawks broke loose in the top of the fourth inning with 3 runs and the Cougars responded with 1 in the bottom-half of the frame. As HSHS added a pair of runs in the sixth, Heart River wasn't giving up — scoring 3 runs to close the gap to 5-4 — but it proved to be insufficient to needs and Nighthawk junior reliever Oscar Perkins took the victory on one inning of work as the Cougars went three-up/three-down in the bottom of the seventh.

All 5 of Obrigewitsch's runs were earned, but Blackwell and Perkins combined for only 3 earned runs and a single K, while scattering 8 hits and giving up zero walks.

Obrigewitsch had a solid night in the batter's box as well, going 2-for-3 with a pair of runs and a stolen-base, while Brayden Kastrow had a 3-run homer and senior first-baseman Jordan Koppinger went 1-for-3 with the other RBI. Junior second-baseman Evan Walter was productive in the matchup with a 2-for-3 effort that features a run and 2 stolen-bases.

For the Nighthawks — who were outhit 8-5 by their hosts in the opener — nobody had a multi-hit game. But Malachi Dilse, Perkins, Jordan Jung and Isaak Guthrie all had RBI and Maddox Pierce went 1-for-3 with a pair of runs.

The nightcap was a runaway for Heart River as the Cougars scored 5 runs in the bottom of the opening frame and added 7 more in a breakout third inning. While Hettinger-Scranton managed to score 4 in the top of the third and 2 more in the next inning, that was all the production the Nighthawks would get in the second-half of the twin-bill as Koppinger and Walter combined for 10 Ks and held the visitors to only 7 hits and a pair of walks, with only 4 of the runs being earned. The Nighthawks' staff combined to allow 9 earned runs and had only 5 strikeouts while giving up 14 hits with only one walk.

Senior third-baseman Tyler Wilson had a 3-for-3 night for Hettinger-Scranton and added a run to 4 RBI's-worth of production with a homer and a game-high 6 total bases.

Meanwhile, freshman centerfielder Carter Corneil also went 3-for-3 for Heart River with a double, 2 runs and a pair of RBI. Koppinger helped his own cause on the mound with a 2-for-3 night that added a double, a steal, a run and 2 RBI and eighth-grade sensation Peyton Erickson went 2-for-3 with a run and 2 RBI as well.

For more information about Cougar baseball, please keep reading The Dickinson Press and/or visit their website at

https://www.badlandsconference.org/public/genie/435/school/13/

For more information about baseball in North Dakota, you find it at

https://ndhsaanow.com/tournaments/baseball

.