Lakers top Elks

Stefan Malkuch admits he was a bit nervous.

When the visiting Lethbridge Elks loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the sixth inning of Tuesday's American Legion baseball game, the Laker pitcher needed to take a breath.

"I had to step off (the mound) and regain myself," Malkuch said.

"But we had a pretty big (8-0) lead. I just wasn't really worried about the runners. I just had to throw it over the plate and let them hit it," he said.

Lethbridge first baseman Josh DayChief swung at Malkuch's first offering and hit into a 6-4-3 double play. The next batter, third baseman Jared Hirsche grounded out to second base.

The Elks scored two runs, but never threatened again as Kalispell claimed both games of a twinbill, 4-1 and 8-2, to run their Western Conference streak to six straight wins.

"It definitely helps when you have the defense behind you," he added.

"I just hit my spots.

"That's big, big, big, big," Laker coach Mike McFarland said afterward. "We're happy.

"That just turns the ship around. It's just huge for us."

It also puts them squarely in the middle of the muddy Western Conference waters.

Lethbridge is 7-4, Kalispell is 9-7, Missoula is 7-5, the Great Falls Stallions are at 8-7 and Medicine Hat is 6-9.

"I think it surprised them. It didn't really surprise us," McFarland said of the sweep.

Neither Malkuch or first game winner Craig Olson pitched when the Lakers visited Lethbridge, he said.

"These guys just shut (the Elks) down.

"These guys are making plays. That's what we're doing differently. We have good at-bats," the coach said.

"Clutch hits, swinging the bats, we're making people make plays. Clutch hits are almost expected," he added.

"I always feel like something good is going to happen."

"Right now, we're playing great," Malkuch agreed.

The breakthrough Tuesday came in the second inning.

The first Laker batter was hit by a pitch. Four hits and one Lethbridge error later, Kalispell was up 4-0.

They added one more run in the third, then benefitted from two more Elk errors (they made six) for three more runs in the fifth.

Malkuch and catcher Jake Fitzsimmons each batted 2-for-3 to lead Kalispell in the first game. In the second game, Geoff Hogan was 2-for-2 and Dan Conners was 2-for-4.

The next action for the Lakers is rest. They'll take the next couple of days off, then head to Polson Saturday for a pair of non-conference games against the Mission Valley Mariners.

LAKERS 4, ELKS 1

Lethbridge 000 010 0 - 1 8 1

Kalispell 100 030 x - 4 8 1

Michael Leavitt and Grant Kveder. Craig Olson and Jake Fitzsimmons. WP - Olson. LP - Leavitt.

Lethbridge - Cole Balog 0-4, Rory McLeod 1-4, Grant Kveder 1-2, Tyler Tamayose 1-4, Marc Leclair 2-3, Josh DayChief 0-3, Brent Wirzba 0-3, Jared Hirsche 3-3, Tyler Aiken 0-3.

Kalispell - Stefan Malkuch 2-3, Dan Conners 1-3, Jake Fitzsimmons 2-3, Geoff Hogan 1-3, Nick Hergesheimer 1-3, Craig Olson 0-2, Matt Venturini 0-3, Chris Hooley 0-2, Sam Freudenburg 1-2.

LAKERS 8, ELKS 2

Lethbridge 000 002 0 - 2 4 6

Kalispell 041 030 x - 8 9 2

Nathan Gilchrist, Kellen Kristjanson (7) and Matt Smith. Stefan Malkuch and Jake Fitzsimmons. WP - Malkuch. LP - Gilchrist. 2B - Balog (L), McLeod (L).

Lethbridge - Balog 1-4, McLeod 1-4, Kveder 0-2, Tamayose 1-2, Leclair 1-3, Daychief 0-3, Hirsche 0-3, Matt Smith 0-2, Aiken 0-1, Wirzba 0-1, Leavitt 0-0.

Kalispell - Malkuch 1-2, Conners 2-4, Fitzsimmons 0-4, Hogan 2-2, Hergesheimer 1-4, Olson 1-3, Venturini 0-3, Hooley 1-3, Freudenburg 1-3.