The North Platte First Nationals went 5-0 this weekend in Canon City, Colo. and brought home the championship trophy of the Bubba’s Bash 2014 tournament.

The tournament featured eight teams from four different states, Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas and of course Nebraska. The First Nationals went 3-0 in pool play Thursday and Friday to earn the No. 1 seed in the National League division. North Platte (15-10) had Saturday off before playing the No. 2 seed from the American League Division, Air Academy (Colorado) Sunday.

Air Academy struck first with a run in the top of the second inning, but the First Nationals quickly responded by scoring four runs in the bottom half to take a 4-1 lead. All four of North Platte’s runs in the second inning were with two outs and the inning was highlighted by an RBI triple from Jack Kenny. The First Nationals scored one run in the third inning to add to their lead before scoring three runs in the fifth inning. Luke Volz led the fifth inning off with a double to get the bats rolling. North Platte gave up three runs in the top of the sixth inning then shut the door in the seventh to get the 8-6 win.

Riley Vierya pitched the first five and one-third innings for the First Nationals giving up six runs on eight hits while striking out five batters and earning the win. Kenny came in for the final one and two-thirds innings to earn the save. Kenny didn’t allow a base runner and struck out two batters. The win propelled North Platte to the Bubba’s Bash Championship game.

In the Championship North Platte played the No. 1 seed from the American League Division, Hays, Kan.  The championship was more of a pitcher’s duel as the First Nationals won 4-3. Hays took an early 2-0 lead by scoring two runs in the top of the second inning. North Platte took its first lead in the fourth inning by scoring three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Volz highlighted the inning with an RBI double and Drew Callaghan drove in two runs as the first four batters of the inning got a hit for North Platte. Hays tied the game in the top of the fifth inning with a run scored before the First Nationals scored the winning run in the bottom of the fifth inning on a passed ball that Alec Wesslund came home on.

Darian Allberry pitched a complete game and earned the win for North Platte. Allberry gave up three runs, one earned, on seven hits and struck out nine batters.

The First Nationals return to Bill Wood Field on Tuesday, June 17 to play a doubleheader against Scottsbluff. North Platte traveled to Scottsbluff for the first two games of the season and lost 7-0 and 11-10. Tuesday’s games begin at 5:30 and 8:00 pm.

The North Platte First Nationals beat Longmont, Colo. 12-9 in a Canon City, Colo. tournament on Friday.

The high scoring game featured 21 runs between the two teams but only 16 hits and North Platte was only responsible for four of those hits. The First Nationals (13-10) took the early lead by scoring four runs in the second inning before Longmont scored six runs in the top of the fourth to go up 6-4. North Platte responded by regaining the lead in the bottom half of the fourth inning with four runs to go up 8-6.  The First Nationals added three more runs in the fifth inning and one more in the sixth to secure the 12-9 win.

Luke Volz led the way for North Platte with two of the team’s four hits, including a triple. He also scored two runs in the game. Alec Wesslund went 0-3 at the plate but still managed to get three RBI. Riley Vierya didn’t have an official at bat after drawing three walks, scoring three times and getting an RBI. The First Nationals drew 10 walks as a team.

Volz started on the mound and pitched the first four innings for North Platte. He gave up six runs, three earned, on nine hits. Jack Kenny came in for the final three innings and gave up three unearned runs on three hits while striking out four batters.

The two teams also combined to commit eight errors in the game.

The First Nationals have Saturday off during the tournament before returning to the diamond Sunday in Canon City. It is yet to be determined who or when North Platte will play to finish the tournament.

The North Platte First Nationals Seniors team won the first two games they played at a tournament in Canon City, Colo. on Thursday.

North Platte (12-10) played Canon City, Colo. to start the tournament and beat them 5-1. The First Nationals wasted no time jumping out to an early lead by scoring three runs in the top of the first inning en route to the win. Jack Kenny led the way at the plate by hitting an RBI triple in the first inning and scoring a run. Kenny’s triple was the only extra-base hit of the game for North Platte. Drew Callaghan and Luke Volz each had two hits in the game. Marcos Silos shut down Canon City from the mound. Silos pitched six innings, giving up just one unearned run on one hit while earning the win.

North Platte’s second game of the day was closer than the first, but still resulted in a First Nationals victory as they beat Carlsbad, N.M. 4-3. Carlsbad jumped on top of North Platte 2-0 after the first inning and led 3-1 going into the bottom of the seventh. Callaghan reached on an error to begin the bottom of the seventh followed by back-to-back singles by Ty Brockmoller and Silos. Austin Chitty hit a sacrifice fly to cut the lead to one run before Carlsbad got the second out of the inning with a strikeout. Alec Wesslund then hit an RBI double to tie the game before Kenny hit a walkoff single to win it.

Brockmoller earned the win on the mound by pitching a complete game and giving up three runs, one earned, on seven hits while striking out four batters.

The First Nationals continue play in the Canon City tournament on Friday. North Platte plays Longmont, Colo. at 5:45 pm then they have an off day Saturday before wrapping up the tournament on Sunday.

The North Platte First Nationals Seniors dropped to 10-10 on the season after getting swept by Hastings in a Cornhusker League doubleheader Tuesday.

North Platte lost the first game of the day 6-1 to Hastings. Hastings scored a run in each of the first two innings before pulling away with three runs in the fourth inning. Dalton Pflughaupt took the loss on the mound for the First Nationals. He pitched a complete game and gave up six runs, three earned, on 13 hits. He also struck out three batters. Drew Callaghan led North Platte at the plate by going 2-3 with a run scored.

North Platte started in a hole in game two as well. Hastings scored a run in the first inning and three more in the second inning to take a 4-0 lead. The First Nationals were able to cut the deficit in half by scoring two runs in the fourth inning, but Hastings scored four in the fifth inning to secure an 8-4 win. Alec Wesslund went 3-5 in the game for North Platte, Austin Chitty went 2-2 with two runs batted in and Luke Volz recorded the First Nationals only extra-base hit on the day with a double. Volz went 2-4 with two runs scored. Jayden Kruse started on the mound for North Platte and pitched four-plus innings, giving up seven runs, six earned, on just one hit. Kruse issued eight walks and struck out seven batters while taking the loss. Volz pitched the final two innings and gave up one run on two hits, struck out three batter and walked four. North Platte didn’t help themselves by issuing 12 walks in the game.

The First Nationals next play in a tournament in Canon City, Colo. North Platte plays Canon City at 3:30 pm on Thursday, followed by a game against Carlsbad, NM at 5:45 pm.

 

The North Platte First Nationals hosted Canon City, Colo. and JC Brager during a rainy weekend and went 2-2.

North Platte (10-8) and Canon City were supposed to meet on Friday night at Bill Wood Field, but because of the rain the game was postponed until Sunday morning. The First Nationals and Canon City also played on Saturday. North Platte played JC Brager on both Saturday and Sunday as well.

The First Nationals began Saturday with a 4-0 shutout win over Canon City. North Platte led 1-0 in a pitchers dual until they scored three runs in the fifth inning to pull away. Darian Allberry led the way at the plate by going 1-3 with a double and two RBI. Ty Brockmoller was dominant on the mound by throwing a complete game shutout. Brockmoller gave up just five hits and struck out seven batters without walking anyone.

The second game of the day for North Platte was the opposite as they got shutout by JC Brager 7-0. The game was shaping up to be a pitchers dual before JC Brager scored six runs in the top of the fourth inning.  The First Nationals were only able to muster one hit against JC Brager’s Noah Kulhanek, who pitched a complete game shutout. Levi Nekuda took the loss on the mound for North Platte after giving up seven runs, six earned, on eight hits in three plus innings pitched. Devan Hovden came in, in relief for the final four innings and gave up five hits, but no runs.

The First Nationals returned to winning Sunday morning against Canon City, 9-1. Jack Kenny led the way at the plate for North Platte going 2-2 with a double and two runs scored. Brockmoller and Alex Harms each had two runs batted in during the game. Allberry was the overall star as he three a five-inning complete game from the mound. Allberry gave up one run on six hits and struck out five batters. He also went 1-2 at the plate with an RBI and two runs scored.

The final game of the weekend for North Platte was another loss to JC Brager, 10-8. The First Nationals had an 8-7 lead in the top of the seventh inning before JC Brager scored three runs to take the lead and get the win. Drew Callaghan and Marcos Silos both had a big game at the plate for North Platte. Callaghan went 3-4 with three RBI and two runs scored. Silos was 3-4 with three RBI. Riley Vierya pitched a complete game for the First Nationals. He gave up 10 runs, seven earned, on 12 hits.

North Platte’s next game is Tuesday, June 10 at Hastings. The First Nationals will play a Cornhusker League doubleheader against Hastings with the first pitch of game one scheduled for 5:30 pm.

The North Platte Juniors team also had a 2-2 weekend. The Juniors played in Kearney and started 2-0 with wins over Lincoln Southeast, 7-2, and Elkhorn South, 10-0. North Platte lost the final games of the weekend to Creighton Prep, 7-4, and Omaha Gross, 6-4. The First Nationals Juniors are now 12-3 on the season and next play Tuesday, June 10 at home against Hastings in a doubleheader that starts at 5:30 pm.

 

The upcoming games for the North Platte First Nationals Senior team have been changed.

The article previously stated, “The First Nationals Seniors next game is Friday, June 6 at 4:00 pm against Canon City, Colo. at Bill Wood Field. North Platte also plays JC Brager at 7:00 pm Friday night.”

The schedule now has North Platte playing one game Friday as they host Canon City, Colo. at 6:00 pm at Bill Wood Field. The schedule for Saturday and Sunday was changed as well. The First Nationals will now play JC Brager at 1:00 pm Saturday and Canon City, Colo. at 7:00 pm both at Bill Wood Field. The final game of the weekend will be Sunday against JC Brager at 1:30 at Bill Wood Field.

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The North Platte First Nationals American Legion baseball team beat Kearney Runza 6-5 Tuesday.

Kearney took the lead in the first inning, 1-0 and added two more runs in the top of the fourth inning to go on top 3-0 over North Platte. The First Nationals (8-6) responded in the bottom half of the fourth inning with four runs to take a 4-3 lead. Alec Wesslund delivered a two-run single, followed by an RBI triple by Jack Kenny and Darian Allberry capped the fourth inning scoring with an RBI single.

Kearney regained the lead by scoring a run in both the fifth and sixth innings. But once again North Platte responded with two runs in the bottom of the sixth to secure the 6-5 win. Ty Brockmoller delivered the two-run single in the sixth. Allberry led the way at the plate for the First Nationals by going 2-3 with an RBI and both Brockmoller and Wesslund delivered two RBIs, while Kenny had North Platte’s only extra-base hit with his fourth inning triple.

Luke Volz earned the win on the mound after he came in, in relief of Jayden Kruse. Volz pitched the final three innings and gave up two runs, one earned, on four hits. Kruse pitched the first four innings and gave up three runs on six hits and recorded six strikeouts.

The First Nationals Juniors also played Kearney on Tuesday and lost 14-9. The loss is the first of the season for the North Platte Juniors (10-1).

The North Platte First Nationals American Legion baseball team beat McCook and Pleasant Dale but lost to Lincoln Amigos in Seward over the weekend .

The First Nationals (7-6) began the weekend with a Friday night game against Lincoln Amigos and lost 11-6. North Platte hit the ball well in the game with eight hits, including three doubles, but six errors doomed the First Nationals from the beginning. Ty Brockmoller started on the mound and only lasted one inning after giving up seven runs on five hits, but six of the runs were unearned as he took the loss.

Alec Wesslund, Darian Allberry and Luke Volz led the way at the plate for North Platte. Wesslund went 2-3 with a double and two RBI, Allberry went 2-2 with a double and one run batted in, and Volz added a double and an RBI.

The First Nationals played at 11:00 am Saturday against Pleasant Dale for the second game of the weekend and won 12-1 in five innings. Allberry stayed hot at the plate by going 3-3 in the game with a double and six runs batted in. Dalton Pflughaupt earned the win by pitching a one-hit complete game. The only run scored by Pleasant Dale was unearned and Pflughaupt had three strikeouts in the game.

The final game of the weekend was a Sunday afternoon game against McCook that North Platte won 13-3 in five innings. The First Nationals wasted no time getting the lead by scoring 11 runs in the first inning. Jack Kenny and Volz led the way at the plate for North Platte. Kenny went 2-3 with two doubles and two RBI and Volz went 2-4 with a triple and four runs batted in. Riley Vierya earned the win on the mound by pitching a complete game. Vierya gave up three unearned runs on five hits and had three strikeouts with no walks.

North Platte’s next game is Tuesday, June 3 against Kearney Runza. It will be a Junior-Senior doubleheader with the Juniors game starting at 5:30 and the Seniors first pitch will be at 8:00 at Bill Wood Field. First National Bank is having their bank night at the ballpark on Tuesday and the First Nationals would like fans to try and Fill the Bill. The team hopes to have the largest crowd ever at a North Platte American Legion game.

The North Platte First Nationals Juniors team improved to 10-0 on the season with a double header sweep of Columbus on Friday. The Juniors beat Columbus 12-1 and 16-1.

 

 

The North Platte First Nationals American Legion baseball team hosted Lexington Wednesday and beat them 9-0 for their third straight win.

The First Nationals (5-5) scored one run in the second inning and three in the third inning then went off for five runs in the fourth inning. Darian Allberry led the way at the plate for North Platte by going 3-3 and driving in three runs and scoring twice. Marcos Silos also had three RBI in the game and Jack Kenny delivered the game’s only extra-base hit with a double.

Levi Nekuda earned the win on the mound by pitching a five inning, complete game shutout. Nekuda allowed just three hits and struck out four batters in the run-rule victory.

North Platte’s next game is Friday, May 30 on the road against Lincoln Amigos in Seward. The first pitch is scheduled for 5:30 pm. The First Nationals will play a game three days in a row in Seward.

The North Platte First Nationals Juniors team improved to 8-0 Wednesday. The Juniors also hosted Lexington and was dominant with a 26-2 win. The Juniors next play on Friday, May 30 in a doubleheader at Columbus with the first pitch scheduled for 2:00 pm.

The North Platte First Nationals American Legion baseball team played six games over Memorial Day Weekend and went 3-3.

The First Nationals (4-5) traveled to Lincoln on Friday for a doubleheader against JC Brager. JC Brager won the first game 6-0 behind the arm of Connor Curry. Curry threw a one-hit shutout against North Platte. The First Nationals lone hit came off the bat of Ty Brockmoller. Jace Barker took the loss on the mound for North Platte. Barker threw four and one-third innings, giving up five runs, three of them earned, on seven hits.

The second game of the doubleheader was a pitchers dual as JC Brager won 2-1. North Platte struck first with a run in the third inning before JC Brager scored two in the fifth to secure the win. Despite scoring one run in the game North Platte didn’t have a hit. JC Brager’s Noah Kulhanek threw the no-hitter and earned the win, giving up just the unearned run. Darian Allberry took the loss on the mound for North Platte after pitching four and one-third innings, giving up two runs on seven hits. Following Friday’s games North Platte was 1-4 on the season.

The First Nationals played in Gretna on Saturday in a Cornhusker League doubleheader. North Platte won the first game of the day, 2-0. Dalton Pflughaupt was dominant on the mound by pitching a complete game one-hit shutout while earning the win. Allberry provided the offense for North Platte by going 1-3 at the plate with a double, an RBI and a run scored.

The second game of the doubleheader favored Gretna as they beat the First Nationals 6-3.  North Platte started to really get the bats rolling with 10 hits in the game, but could only get three runs across the plate. Jack Kenny, Barker, Luke Volz and Drew Callaghan each had two hits in the loss. Barker had the First Nationals lone extra-base hit with a double and Jayden Kruse had two RBI to lead North Platte. Riley Vierya took the loss on the mound by giving up four runs, three of them earned, on five hits in four innings. North Platte had a record of 2-5 after Saturday’s games.

The final doubleheader of the holiday weekend was North Platte’s home-opener. The First Nationals hosted Norfolk on Memorial Day and won game one 11-1. Callaghan had a two-run home run for the first home run this season by a First National. Brockmoller added a double and Volz went 3-3 at the plate in the run-rule victory. Brockmoller earned the win on the mound as well after giving up just one run on five hits, while striking out five batters.

Game two was more of a test for North Platte after leading by just one run in the sixth inning en route to a 10-6 win. The First Nationals led 7-3 before Norfolk scored three runs in the top of the fifth inning to make it a one-run game. The First Nationals gave themselves a cushion in the sixth inning by scoring three runs to secure the win. The sixth inning offense was provided by Volz. He hit a two-run double for North Platte’s only extra-base hit of the game. Volz also earned the save, pitching two and one-third innings without giving up a run on two hits. Kruse earned the win after giving up six runs, five of them earned, on six hits, while striking out four batters. Barker also had two RBI in the game to pace the North Platte offense. The First Nationals finished the weekend with a 4-5 record overall.

The North Platte First Nationals seniors next game is Wednesday, May 28 against Lexington at Bill Wood Field. It is a juniors-seniors doubleheader. The juniors will play at 5:30 pm with the first pitch for the seniors game scheduled for 8:00 pm.

The most recent results for the North Platte First Nationals juniors team shows they have a record of 5-0 after beating Ogallala 6-5  and Gering 13-3 over the weekend.

The North Platte First Nationals (1-2) made the short trip to Hershey on Tuesday and earned its first win of the season.

North Platte jumped on top of Hershland early by scoring three runs in the first inning of a 13-0 win. The First Nationals added two more runs in the third inning before going off in the fourth inning for eight runs. The game ended after five innings with the run-rule in effect.

North Platte only had five hits in the game and none of them were for extra bases. The First Nationals were also issued 10 walks in the game. Drew Callaghan continued his hot start to the season by going 1-2 with two RBI and a walk. Callaghan is currently hitting .444 to lead the team. He also leads the team with five RBI and one double.

Jayden Kruse earned the win on the mound by pitching a complete game shutout. Kruse gave up two hits in the game and struck out nine batters compared to just one walk. The First Nationals defense backed Kruse up as well. North Platte didn’t commit any errors in the game for the first time this season.

The First Nationals were scheduled to play their home opener today in a doubleheader against Columbus, but Columbus had a conflict and had to cancel. The games will be postponed to a later date. Because of the postponement North Platte doesn’t have a home game until Monday, May 26 vs. Norfolk. The First Nationals next game is Friday in Lincoln against JC Brager. The doubleheader will begin at 5:00 pm at Lincoln Sherman.