The Hinckley-Finlayson Jaguars will face off against the Aitkin Gobblers at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Having struggled with 13 losses in a row, Hinckley-Finlayson turned things around against Braham on Monday. They walked away with a 9-4 win over the Bombers. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last seven times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Ethan Martin made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out nine batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and three unearned) runs off nine hits (and only one walk). He has become a key player for Hinckley-Finlayson: the team is 2-1 when he allows at most one earned run, but 0-12 otherwise. Martin was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with three stolen bases, one run, and one RBI. Those three stolen bases gave him a new career-high.
| 05/19/25 vs Braham | 2 |
| 05/13/25 @ Crosby-Ironton | 1 |
| 05/09/25 @ Mille Lacs co-op [Isle/Onamia] | 1 |
| 04/11/25 @ East Central | 1 |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Ty Westrum, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, two doubles, and one stolen base. Those two doubles gave him a new career-high. Jaxon Thom was another key player, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with one run and one RBI.
Hinckley-Finlayson kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That's the most hits they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Aitkin entered their tilt with Mesabi East on Monday with two consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with three. They blew past the Giants 14-7. The Gobblers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 11 contests by six runs or more this season.
Aitkin got a massive performance out of Cole Trotter, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of John Pelarski, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with two runs and two RBI.
Hinckley-Finlayson's victory was their first in the conference, bumping their conference record up to 1-6 and their overall record up to 2-13. As for Aitkin, their win bumped their record up to 12-5.
