By Ryan Simonson
Contributing Writer
There are certain pitchers that are referred to as “max effort” guys. They are often spindly, brooding fellas who bring a rambunctious, frenetic energy to the mound, twisting and contorting and hurling every pitch with the unhinged ferocity of a teenage boy trying to win the entire wall of stuffed animals at the county fair by making the stack of bottles explode on contact. Drake Kilber is not one of them.
The tall, athletically-constructed Chaska Cubs portsider couldn’t look less strained as he effortlessly conducts his business on the mound with the casual appearance of a father playing catch in the backyard with a child on a sunny Saturday afternoon. Still photos of his deliveries look almost boring in review, as he nonchalantly slings unhittable strikes from freeze-frames of uncomplicated, relaxed poses.
His results, however, speak forcefully.
With tonight’s eight-inning lockdown performance, Kilber has now gone 2-0, and has not surrendered an earned run with 14 strikeouts through 15 ⅔ innings of work in Chaska’s wins over Sartell and North Saint Paul.
The Cubs started quickly in the Class A quarterfinal matchup and never looked back. Kilber struck out three Snowmen after surrendering a leadoff single, then in the home half of the first, Michael Gabbard and Walker Rogers stroked back-to-back doubles to put Chaska ahead 1-0.
The Snowmen went quietly up and down in the second through fourth innings, while the Cubs put a few men on board but failed to convert them into runs. In the bottom of the fourth inning Chaska blew the game wide open with five runs. Walker Rogers reached on an error, later scoring on a Maddox Foss single. Two batters later, Nathan Rosenberg crushed a bases-clearing triple to put the Cubs up 5-0, chasing North Saint Paul starter Mitch Gutknecht from the game for golden-haired max-effort lefty Winston Wisely. Henry Bushey greeted him with an RBI single, pushing the score to 6-0 before Wisely turned the frame over.
Even-keeled Kilber continued to cruise, putting the Snowmen down in order through the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings.
The Cubs added runs in the seventh and eighth innings, North Saint Paul helping them out with a few of the five errors they would commit on the night, and the Snowmen headed into the ninth inning trailing 8-0 hoping to break the ice against new Chaska pitcher Mason Windschitl.
After a pair of walks to start the inning, the Snowmen had their leadoff runner thrown out at third base for the first out, followed by another walk and a hit batsman to load the bases. After another walk forced across North Saint Paul’s first run of the game, a Patrick Lundgren single scored two more, closing the gap to 8-3 before Chaska veteran Pete Ohnsorg slammed the door on the Snowmen, sending Chaska to the state semifinal.
Walker Rogers and Maddox Foss each had a pair of hits and and RBI for the Cubs, while Rosenberg and Bushey each contributed a hit, Rosenberg had three RBIs. The wiry Wisely threw 3 ⅔ innings for North Saint Paul, striking out nine, while Kaden Johnson contributed a pair of hits for the Snowmen.
Chaska advances to face the Champlin Park LoGators Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. in Gaylord. The winner will advance to Sunday’s Class A state championship game at noon in Gaylord.
