Brandyn Olsen is congratulated by third base coach Garrett Anderson after hitting a home run in the third inning of Blue Earth's baseball game against Hanska.

The Blue Earth Pirates took an early lead against one of the top teams in Class C of the Minnesota Baseball Association, the Hanska Lakers, on Wednesday, June 24, at Veterans Field in Blue Earth. However, the Lakers rallied in the sixth inning and went on to defeat the Pirates 6-3 in a seven-inning non-league game.

Brandyn Olsen’s two-run homer in the bottom of the third inning broke a scoreless tie and gave Blue Earth a 2-0 lead. The Pirates did their damage after the Lakers had retired the first two Blue Earth batters to begin the bottom of the third.

Kaylan Legred kept the inning alive with a single that fell in between the center and right fielders. Olsen was up next and sent the ball over the fence in right-center field to give the home team a 2-0 lead.

Blue Earth extended their threat with three consecutive singles by Hunter Bleess, Kane Malo and Talan Priester before Hanska got out of the inning with a fly ball out to left field.

Olson, who was the starting pitcher for the Pirates, was sharp in the early innings. He had a 1-2-3 first inning and retired the first two batters in the top of the second inning before Hanska got their first base runner with a walk. Olsen caught the runner leaning the wrong way and his pick-off throw to first baseman Garrett Anderson was good for the third out.

Hanska recorded their first hit of the game in the top of the third inning when Alex Stresemann hit a slow dribbler towards short. Stresemann advanced to second base on a passed ball but was stranded there when Olsen struck out Nolan Stresemann and Kevin Larson popped out to the Blue Earth third baseman, Tanner Nawrocki.

The Lakers got their first two batters on base to begin the top of the fourth inning before the Pirates got out of the inning with an infield fly out, a strike out and a pop up to Malo at second base.

Hanska’s Brock Wellmann singled to start the top of the fifth inning and advanced to third base on two consecutive sacrifice bunts. Olsen got out of the inning on a grounder to Anderson at first base who tossed the ball to Olsen who was covering the bag.

The Lakers took the lead in the top of the sixth inning by combining four singles, a walk and a couple of errors by the Pirates to plate four runners and take a 4-2 lead.

Hanska added two more runs in the top of the seventh inning to go on top 6-2 before Blue Earth tallied a run in the bottom of the inning when Legred, who started the inning by getting hit by a pitch, scored on a double by Parker Eichenberger.

The final totals showed the Lakers with six runs on 11 hits. They committed zero errors.

Blue Earth scored three runs on nine hits and was charged with two errors.

The winning pitcher for Hanska was Alex Stresemann who relieved starter Brady Mosenden to start the fifth inning. Stresemann threw two and two thirds innings and gave up one earned run on three hits while walking one batter and striking out two. Mosenden pitched four innings and was charged with two earned runs on six hits. He walked one batter and had five strikeouts. Chris Knowles relieved Stresemann and recorded the final out of the game.

Olsen took the loss after hurling five and two thirds innings. He gave up four runs, two earned, on seven hits. He walked two batters and struck out three. Lee Hodges pitched the final inning and a third and allowed two earned runs on four hits. He did not walk a batter and struck out two.

Priester and Anderson each had two hits for the Pirates. Olsen drove in two runs with his home run and Eichenberger drove in the other run with his double.

Blue Earth goes on the road to Janesville on Sunday, June 28, to play the Gators before returning home on Wednesday, July 1, to host the Eagle Lake Expos.