Arcadia baseball responds to adversity to win first game of 2023
Arcadia’s Login Scow sent a pitch to a Whitehall batter during last Monday’s 4-1 win at Arcadia High School. Scow earned a save with the victory. (Times photograph by Benjamin Pierce)
Whitehall’s Bryce Schorbahn watched the baseball to his glove to earn the out on an infield hit from Arcadia’s Prestin Scow during last Monday’s 4-1 win for Arcadia at Arcadia High School. (Times photograph by Benjamin Pierce)
In a nonconference baseball game between two area teams that started with both sides appearing to feel each other out in the first two innings, it was the third inning that decided who would leave with their first win of 2023 last Monday.
Whitehall (1-1 this season) had just taken a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning and was feeling strong.
Their Trempealeau County foe in Arcadia would not be outdone, though, scoring four runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning and holding from there to win 4-1 in their first game of the year.
“It was a good response I thought,” Arcadia coach Nate Pronschinske said of the effort. “It’s important to answer back as soon as you give up a run so it was nice to see us have a nice big inning there with some timely hits and then get a little help with those passed balls, but it was a good response for sure.”
Devon McCune opened the scoring last week, tagging up and reaching home on a sacrifice fly from teammate Brock Sluga in the top of the third to give Whitehall the 1-0 advantage.
“I think the first few innings we were trying to feel each other out,” Whitehall coach Alex Eid said. “It was the first time a lot of our guys had seen live pitching, so I don’t know if the second time coming through is what helped the guys feel more confident coming through in that third inning. … I think that’s how we had that success there.”
Arcadia responded with four straight singles in the bottom half of the inning to go up 2-1 before adding two more runs on a wild pitch by Whitehall with two outs against them.
Both coaches said the third inning appeared to make a difference.
Whitehall took the lead after opening the third inning with a pair of singles, and Arcadia held the Norsemen to four hits total while racking up seven of their own.
McCune led Whitehall with a 3-for-3 day at the plate. Arcadia got the same production from Carson Martin with three hits, including a double.
Prestin Scow earned the win for Arcadia, and teammates Vince Braun and Login Scow each threw a pair of strikeouts. McCune led Whitehall with three strikeouts in his first start, and Sluga threw two.
For Arcadia, starting 2023 with a win is a welcomed beginning to a season that they hope ends with a competitive finish in the Coulee Conference and playoff success.
“We came out with the win last night, but I didn’t think it was our cleanest game. The run we gave up was unearned and we allowed them to stay in it by keeping it close, so the message is just keep building off the good things, learn from our mistakes and try to improve,” Pronschinske said.
Eid said his team can continue to work as they adapt to new positions.
“The best thing for us is we got some guys some quality work in. We had four pitchers at less than 30 pitches, but I was happy we were able to get our pitchers some work and then able to move different guys around for different looks that will probably happen during the season.”
Whitehall defeated Melrose-Mindoro, 11-5, on Thursday. No further information from that game was reported to the Times.
Arcadia was scheduled to visit West Salem this Tuesday, while Whitehall will host Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran on Tuesday as well as Pepin/Alma on Thursday.
