Class A Baseball Championship: Randolph 2, Hayfield 1
Posted: Friday, June 17, 2022 - 1:21 PM
For the second consecutive season, the Gopher Conference can boast a Class A baseball champion.
Senior Jacob Weckop threw a three-hitter to lead No. 2 Randolph to a 2-1 victory over top-seeded Hayfield in the Class A championship game on Friday, June 17, 2022 at Target Field in downtown Minneapolis. It was the first championship for Randolph (25-1) while Hayfield (24-3) was seeking its second consecutive crown.
Weckop, a righthander, walked five and struck out 13 as the Rockets finished the season on a 12-game winning streak. During the conference season, Randolph posted a 6-5 victory over Hayfield in eight innings on May 3. It came during a streak when the Rockets opened the year on a 13-game winning strek.
Hayfield senior Nathan Klocke was equally dominant and nearly matched Weckop, walking nobody with 15 strikeouts.
The pitchers dominated from the start. Hayfield, the top seed and defending champion, grabbed an early lead. In the second inning, sophomore Aidan Nelson walked, moved to a second on a groundout and raced home on sophomore Zander Jacobson’s single. The Rockets, however, responded quickly. In the top of the third, junior Collin Otto led off with a single, but was forced at second base by sophomore Brayden Olsen. Senior Andrew Jenkins then drilled a double down the left field line.
Two innings later, a trio of miscues paved the way to the Randolph scoring the deciding run. Otto’s hard hit ball eluded Jacobson’s glove and headed to the right field corner where it bounced away from right fielder Aidan Nelson. Otto then scored on a passed ball to complete the scoring.
But there was still plenty of drama remaining. In the bottom of the sixth, Nelson and Ethan Pack hit back-to-back two out singles. Weckop induced a fielder’s choice grounder to end the threat. In the seventh, Easton Fritcher drew a two out walk and promptly stole second base. Klocke lined out to shortstop Andrew Jenkins to end the game. Randolph was fourth in the 2021 tournament.
Randolph’s journey to a state championship included a 10-0 victory over MACCRAY in the quarterfinals, followed by a 4-3 win over No. 3 New York Mills in the semifinals.
