Jake Casareto, Saints in NCAA Tournament

Jake Casareto, a junior from International Falls and the starting shortstop at St. Scholastica, is once again part of the Saints’ baseball team that is returning to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

St. Scholastica received an automatic NCAA Tournament bid after winning the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Tournament it hosted late last week.

The Saints, who are 33-9 this season and went 21-0 in the UMAC, open the NCAA Regional Tournament at 4 p.m. today in Whitewater, Wis., against North Park University of Illinois.

Casareto, who has started in all 42 games this season, has a .326 batting average with 45 hits and 30 RBI.

L-BF softball team improves to 15-1

Courtney Pfeifer scattered 2 hits and struck out eight when the Littlefork-Big Falls softball team won a road game Monday against Northland, 14-2, in five innings.

Of L-BF’s 12 hits, Pfeifer had four of them. Emily Knaeble added 3 hits, while Brooke Millerbernd belted a home run over the fence.

“We’re hitting the heck out of the ball still, and we’re playing good defense,” said Vikings head coach Mike Imhof.

L-BF is 15-1 for the season and has wrapped up the No. 1 seed in its Sub-Section for the Section 7A Tournament that begins next Tuesday. The Vikings’ final regular-season home game is 1:30 p.m. today against Northeast Range.

Falls softball team drops two at Hibbing

International Falls lost both games it played at Friday’s softball tournament in Hibbing.

In game one, the Broncos ended up losing to Eveleth-Gilbert, 17-7.

The Golden Bears scored 9 runs in the opening inning off of Broncos starting pitcher Morgan Bruess, who recorded the loss and was replaced by Teagan Anderson in the second inning after being injured.

For the game, E-G outhit the Falls, 15-10.

The Broncos’ Olivia Santee batted 3-4 with 3 singles, Sam Hams went 2-3 with a triple and Meghan Tomczak added 2 hits.  

Hibbing 8, I. Falls 4

Both teams tallied 14 hits apiece when Falls lost game two to Hibbing, 8-4.

Anderson pitched a complete game in recording the loss.

At the plate, Cassie Tomczak had a single and a home run. Meghan Tomczak went 4-4 with a triple and Shawna Misner added a triple for the Broncos.

Section 7AA Tournament

Falls begins the Section 7AA Tournament on May 22.