Another Split for Hi-Liner Baseball
The regular season has been a little bit of everything for the Valley City Hi-Liners baseball team — flashes of big offensive innings, gritty wins, frustrating errors, tough pitching stretches, and lessons learned the hard way. But after splitting a doubleheader Saturday, the Hi-Liners head into the final week of the regular season sitting at 7-7 overall with one final tune-up remaining before postseason play begins.
Valley City opened the day with a strong 9-5 victory over Shiloh Christian, showing exactly the kind of offensive pressure and timely hitting that has made this team dangerous throughout the season.
The Hi-Liners exploded offensively in the middle innings behind another big day from senior leaders Corbyn Powell and Jack Samuelson. Powell collected multiple extra-base hits, including a triple and double, while Samuelson drove in runs and continued to provide stability in the middle of the lineup. Chase Coghlan added a huge two-run triple late in the game to help Valley City create separation.
Valley City also got key innings on the mound from Adam Shanenko and Brody Mueller, combining for strikeouts in big moments to help the Hi-Liners work through several late Shiloh rallies. Even when Shiloh threatened late with runners on base, Valley City found ways to close innings and finish the game.
In the second game of the day, the Hi-Liners ran into a tough Park River squad and fell 12-2.
Valley City actually jumped out early, scoring two runs in the first inning after hits from Powell and Samuelson helped create immediate pressure. But defensive miscues, free bases, and pitching inconsistency allowed Park River to steadily pull away as the game progressed.
That inconsistency has really defined much of the season for the Hi-Liners. At times, the offense looks capable of competing with anybody on the schedule. There have been stretches where Valley City swings the bats aggressively, pressures defenses, and strings together quality at-bats from top to bottom. But extended innings defensively, walks, hit batters, and untimely errors have often erased momentum just as quickly.
Still, there is plenty for this group to feel optimistic about entering postseason baseball.
The Hi-Liners have shown they can score runs in bunches. They have veteran players capable of carrying games offensively. And perhaps most importantly, they’ve battled through adversity all season instead of folding when things got difficult. For a team sitting right at .500 entering tournament play, that experience matters.
Now the focus shifts to Tuesday’s regular-season finale at New Rockford-Sheyenne.
And despite the ups and downs, this much is true: nobody is going to be excited about seeing a dangerous, streaky Hi-Liner offense in a postseason setting. ⚾
Hi-Liner Baseball Doubleheader Stat Pack ⚾
Game 1 — Valley City 9, Shiloh Christian 5
Corbyn Powell: 4-for-5, 2B, 3B, 3 runs scored
Jack Samuelson: 2 doubles, 3 RBIs
Chase Coghlan: 2-run triple, sacrifice fly
Andrew Sykora: RBI, walk, stolen base
Valley City offense: 9 runs on timely extra-base hitting
Pitching: Hi-Liners recorded key strikeouts in late-inning pressure situations
Game 2 — Park River 12, Valley City 2
Corbyn Powell: 2-for-3, double, run scored
Jack Samuelson: reached base twice, scored a run
Hi-Liners: scored both runs in the opening inning
Park River: capitalized on walks, hit batters, and extra opportunities
Valley City record: moves to 7-7 overall
Coming Up
📍 Tuesday at New Rockford-Sheyenne
⚾ Final regular season game
