The game featured clutch hitting, solid defense and a little bit of power from the two All-Star teams, with both teams limiting errors and getting a home run in the game.

Springfield’s Jordan Milbrath was selected as the game’s MVP, going 2 for 3 with a double and two runs scored while also getting the save, pitching a shutout ninth inning for the TEL.

“It was nice to have a game to warm up, we had a game last night,” Milbrath said. “I was just up there trying to swing at good pitches, and I got a few.

“I think pitching’s my first love. Pitching’s just a lot of fun for me. It felt good out there for me today, easy to get loose when it’s warm out like this. Just tried to throw strikes. I knew I had a really good defense behind me, they made plays, and we got out of the inning. It was great.”

Staff photo by Ari Selvey Hanska’s Tanner Olson celebrates after a home run with New Ulm’s Cole Ranweiler (31) during the Tomahawk East League vs. Cornbelt League All-Star Game Saturday at Essig Ballpark.

This was Milbrath’s second selection to the All-Star game, and he said the environment around the game was a nice change from the friendly rivalries the players had throughout the season.

“It’s just a blast,” Milbrath said. “It’s a great group of guys, it’s a great group of baseball players. We play each other throughout the year and you get to know each other, and the All-Star Game is a lot of fun because you’re all on the same team. You’re not rooting against each other. But there’s a lot of great guys here.”

New Ulm’s Sam Keckeisen got the win for the TEL, striking out one while allowing one earned run on one hit in two innings. The TEL pitched six players in the game, with Searles’s Mark Schommer standing out with three strikeouts and one hit allowed in two innings.

At the plate for the TEL, Hanska’s Tanner Olson had a two-run homer, while Stark’s Sean Mathiowetz was 1 for 3 with a double and a run scored. Stark’s Nick Labat had a double, and New Ulm’s Cole Ranweiler had a hit and two stolen bases. Courtland’s Teddy Giefer added a double for the TEL.

Raymond’s Merman Solomon took the loss, striking out two while allowing three runs on three hits in an inning of work. Bird Island’s Casey Lewandowski made the start, holding the TEL to one run on two hits and one walk in three innings, and Marshall’s Mitchell Bouwman struck out one and allowed one hit and no walks in two innings of work. At the plate for the CBL, Raymond’s Isaac Call had a double and an RBI, as did Raymond’s Tyler Steen. Bird Island’s Dylan Gass hit a solo home run, while Wabasso’s CJ Thies and Marshall’s Wes Sarsland collected a hit apiece.

The CBL put the pressure on right away in the first inning, with Call driving in Willmar’s Ashton Gregory with a double. The CBL scored again in the third with Steen repeating Call’s hit, doubling and scoring Gregory to make it a 2-0 game.

The TEL responded in the bottom of the third, with Milbrath getting to second on a hit, taking third on a wild pitch, then coming home on a fielding error put into play by Olson. The TEL had a big fourth inning as Mathiowetz took second with a deep hit, then scored on a single by Milbrath. Olson continued the inning with a slicing hit to deep left field that snuck past the foul post for a home run.

Both teams played good defense and saw solid pitching for the next several innings, with neither team scoring in the fifth, sixth or seventh innings. In the eighth, Gass put some juice back into the CBL with a home run to left field, but Leavenworth’s Jackson Huiras recovered on the mound with the next two outs, then Milbrath closed out the game, forcing three groundouts to end it.