Things continue to go well for a trio of Moose Jaw Ice players taking the field with the Minot Storm Blue at the USA 12U B Softball Northern Nationals in Fargo, N.D.
Chloe Strueby, Aspen Olafson and Dru Ansell from the U13 AA provincial champion Ice are in action with Minot and have won their first playoff game in the 20-team tournament.
The Storm closed out the round robin with a 14-2 victory on Friday morning over the Deacon Firebirds before taking another comfortable win in their first game of the double-knockout playoffs, rolling to a 14-5 victory over Grantsburg Barnette.
Minot’s first game of the day didn’t feature much anxiety, as two runs in the first were followed by eight in the second and four more in the third for the lopsided win.
Ansell had a hit and drew a pair of walks in three trips to the plate, scoring three runs and knocking in one. Strueby was 2-for-2 with a run scored and an RBI, while Olafson was 1-for-3, scored a run and knocked in a pair.
Strueby started the game and struck out a pair without allowing a hit over the first two innings.
That win gave Minot a 2-1 record and sent them into the first round of the playoffs, where they took on Grantsburg. There, a five-run first inning set the tone, and the Storm would lead 8-2 through three before tacking on a pair of runs in each remaining frame for the 14-5 win.
It was Olafson’s turn to lead the way at the plate, going 4-for-5 with a double and three runs scored, while Ansell was 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBI. Strueby was 2-for-2 with two walks, a run scored and an RBI.
Strueby got the start for the third straight game and went five innings, allowing five runs, four earned, on six hits while striking out 12.
The Storm will need four more wins to claim the national title, and are back in action Saturday morning when they take on Hillsboro 12U.
You can follow along with all the scores from the tournament by clicking right here.
