Despite a furious eight-run rally, the Almond-Bancroft baseball team was unable to overtake seventh-ranked Green Lake/Princeton, and had its playoff run come to an end in a WIAA Division 4 Sectional Semifinal at Oakfield Tuesday, June 5.

Down 9-0, the Eagles (10-7, 7-5) scored eight runs in the top of the fifth inning to pull within 9-8, but Green Lake (16-6) held off the Eagles over the final two innings to win 9-8 and advance to the Sectional Finals.

After claiming a Regional Title with a 3-2 win at home over second-seeded Wild Rose Thursday, May 31, top-seeded Almond faced fellow top seed Green Lake Tuesday morning.

Green Lake took advantage of three Almond errors in the bottom of the first inning to score unearned four runs off senior pitcher Alec Wiczek and take a 4-0 lead, and then scored one run on a RBI triple and another run on an error in the bottom of the second inning to go up 6-0.

Following a one-out error in the bottom of the third inning, Green Lake had a two-out RBI single and back-to-back RBI doubles to extend its lead to 9-0, as it scored nine runs on six hits and five Almond errors.

The Eagles trailed 9-0 heading into the top of the fifth inning, when senior catcher and NCAA Division II Winona State (Minn.) recruit Derek Baumgartner had a RBI double with nobody out, and Wiczek and freshman Daniel Baumgartner followed with back-to-back RBI singles to make it 8-3.

Junior left fielder Zach Clark added a one-out RBI single to pull Almond within 8-4, and one out later, sophomore third baseman Gage Meddaugh, senior designated hitter Emmett Stanislawski, freshman shortstop Thomas Hunt and Derek Baumgartner each had consecutive two-out RBI singles to pull the Eagles within 9-8, before a pop out ended the inning.

It remained 9-8 going into the top of the sixth inning, when the Eagles went down in order, while junior center fielder Jon Perrin led off the top of the seventh inning with a single.

However, Green Lake got a strikeout and a pair of groundouts to close out a 9-8 win and end the Eagles’ season, before it lost 20-6 to eighth-ranked Johnson Creek in the Sectional Final later Tuesday.

Wiczek took the loss against Green Lake after he allowed one earned run on six hits, struck out one and walked none over two and 2/3 innings, while Daniel Baumgartner allowed three hits, struck out four and walked one in three and 1/3 shutout innings of relief.

Derek Baumgartner went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI, Clark and Meddaugh both went 2-for-4, and Hunt was 2-for-5 to lead a 13-hit attack for the Almond offense.