DETROIT LAKES — The past couple of weeks have been filled with choppy waters for the Detroit Lakes baseball team. Riding a six-game losing skid, the Lakers welcomed Central Lakes Conference rival Alexandria to Washington Ballpark for a doubleheader on Friday, May 2.

The Cardinals put on a show as they outscored the Lakers 25-5 in both games. Alexandria defeated Detroit Lakes 11-1 in Game 1 and 14-4 in Game 2. The Lakers extended their losing streak to eight games and dropped to 1-10 on the season.

The Lakers have struggled to put complete games together. The offense has been cold during the losing streak. Detroit Lakes has averaged 1.4 runs per game and has given up an average of just under 9.6 runs per game.

Detroit Lakes head coach Mark Gulseth wants to see his team continue to work hard despite the outcomes of the games. Gulseth had pushed his team to keep a positive attitude, hoping things would turn around sooner rather than later.

“Alexandria is a really tough team and you have to give them a ton of credit,” he said. “They showed us today that if you give them anything, they take advantage and put the pressure on you. We had our chances with some guys on base, and it has been the story of the year where we can’t get that big hit to get the guys in.”

In Game 1, Alex Specht started on the mound for the Lakers. Specht threw four and two-thirds innings and allowed nine runs on eight hits. He struck out five batters and walked four on 105 pitches. Corbin Krump allowed two runs on four hits in two and one-third innings of relief for the Lakers.

Alexandria scored three runs in the top of the first to set the tone. Jackson Waltzing smashed a leadoff home run on the second pitch of the game for the Cardinals. Alexandria collected two more hits and a walk to drive in two more runs to take a 3-0 lead after half an inning.

The Lakers scored their lone run of the game in the bottom of the second. Eli Hatch hit a single up the middle to drive in a run. The offense tallied three total hits thanks to the bats of Griffin Lindberg, Holden Ryding, and Hatch.

“I think we’re swinging and missing a lot,” Gulseth said. “We’re taking maybe two biggest swings when we shouldn’t be taking big swings. We aren’t a home run team, so we have to focus more on putting the ball in play. Taking our time in our at-bats should help us in the long run.”

Alexandria’s Sam Anderson was dominant in his short outing on the mound. He struck out eight batters and allowed one run on one hit in three innings. Parker Converse threw four innings of relief and gave up two hits and struck out five batters.

After scoring one run in the top of the third, the Cardinals put up five more in the top of the fifth, including a three-run home run by Landon Gess Norling. Alexandria added a pair of runs in the top of the seventh to take an 11-1 lead.

In Game 2, the Cardinals scored 14 runs on eight hits in five innings. Griffin Lindberg started on the mound for the Lakers, struggling with his command as he walked six batters. Lindberg pitched three and two-thirds innings and allowed 10 runs on seven hits in 83 pitches.

“It has been the story for us all year. We have just one bad inning that puts us behind the eight ball,” Gulseth said. “We just have to eliminate that bad inning. If we can group those innings where we’re looking good and playing defense behind our pitchers, we can be a tough team. If we are walking, there’s no defense for a walk.”

Detroit Lakes struck first in the top of the first, thanks to an RBI single from Specht. Alexandria scored six runs on three hits and four walks in the bottom of the first inning. The Lakers added three runs in the top of the second. Jared Ohm-Mehrer walked, and Kael McArthur singled to get on base. Hatch doubled to drive in Ohm-Mehrer and McArthur to cut the lead to 6-4.

Alexandria scored four more runs on three hits in the bottom of the second to lead 10-4. The Cardinals took advantage of the Lakers’ struggles finding the zone in the bottom of the fifth. Henry Peeters walked five batters along with multiple passed balls to allow Alexandria to walk off Detroit Lakes in five innings.

“We knew coming into the season that we are in a tough conference with some really good teams,” Gulseth said. “There are going to be tough games every single night. We talked about it, and everyone is on board because this is how we are going to get better. We want to play tough teams. We know in the long run that it's going to make us better.”