University of Minnesota Athletics
Incoming Freshmen Win American Legion World Series
8/17/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Aug. 16, 2011
Incoming freshmen Lance Thonvold and Tony Skjefte helped Eden Prairie, Minn., win the American Legion World Series, on August 16, 2011 in Shelby, N.C. Playing in six games over the course of five days and twice on Tuesday, Eden Prairie earned the championship title over Tupelo, Miss.
Thonvold, Skjefte and Eden Prairie started the title run with a 14-3 loss to Midland, Mich. However, after their opening loss, the team rolled through to the championship. Falling into the loser's bracket, the team battled back and defeated Waipahu, Hawaii, 10-2 on August 13 and Gaffney, S.C., 12-2 on August 14. The team would then play three straight games en route to the championship. On August 15, Tupelo was up, 4-2, heading into the bottom of the sixth when Eden Prairie added six runs in the sixth, and another six in the seventh for a 14-4 route.
On August 16, Eden Prairie held onto a 2-1 win over Las Vegas and faced Tupelo for the championship. After trailing 4-0 in the first, Eden Prairie battled back and scored two runs in the second, one in the fifth and another in the eighth to send the game into extra innings. Thonvold came in relief to pitch six innings. In the top of the 13th, Eden Prairie took advantage of a walk, which later proved to be the game-winning run. In the bottom of the 13th and one out, Thonvold allowed two hits, but picked off the tying run at second and had the next batter ground out for the title.
In the championship game, Thonvold faced 22 batters and struck out four. He did not allow a run to hold Tupelo to just its four runs in the first inning and was the winning pitcher. At the plate, he walked and was a run in the second. Skjefte went 1-6 on the night and hit a double. In the eighth inning he reached on a fielder's choice and tied the game when he scored a run in the top of the eighth.
It was the second longest championship game, and the first time the title game went into extra innings. It was also the first time since 2005 that a team lost in the first round and came back to win the championship.
During the World Series, the Gopher connections contributed to Eden Prairie's play in every game. Thonvold hit back-to-back home runs against Hawaii and played right field and pitched. In the win over Gaffney, Skjefte hit a double, triple and a home run, while Thonvold had a two-run home run. In the first game against Tupelo, Skjefte drove in three runs, while Thonvold did not allow a hit in two innings, striking out one.
