Dean Turnlund opened the game by drawing a walk followed by a single  by Joe Schultz. John McCaustlin doubled in Turnlund and Miuke Fier hit a long double driving in both Schultz and McCaustlin as the Mariners jumped off to a quick 3 - 0 lead.

In the 2nd inning, Matt Moriarity reached on an error and Joel Schmitz drove a single to right. Turnlund then steped into a piutchg and drove it over the left field wall for a 3-run homerun giving the Mariners a 6-1 advantage.

In the 4th, Turnlund again drew a walk and scored on a double by Schultz. Fier then singled in Schultz and the Mariners were up 8 - 2.

John Barrett singled in the 7th, took 2nd on a passed ball, third on an infield out and scored on a single by Schmitz to complete the Mariner scoring.

Tim Hanson threw 4 innings, surrendering but 3 hits and walking only two and inducing ground balls to start 2 key double plays. Bill Gabler made his 2010 debut pitching the 5th and 6th innings striking out four and allowing a single base hit.   

11

Dean Turnlund got things going for the Mariners in the third with one-out when he reached on an error by the Bee's 3rd baseman. John Barrett forced Scott Rohne at third for the second out. Mike Fier then helped his own cause with a drive to the center-field fence to score Turnlund and Barrett and give the M's a 2 - 0.lead.

In the sixth Mariner catcher Mac McCallion reached on bad throw to first by the Bee's shortstop, He took 2nd on the overthrow and was advanced to third by a wild pitch. He then scored on a double by Matt Moriarity. Jim Manfred singled home Moriarity for the M's final run and they held on to gain a 4 - 3 victory and improve their record to 7 and 4 for the season..

Fier once again was dominant as he walked only one, struck out 12 and limited the Bee's to 4 hits in going the whole route for his 5th consecutive complete game of the season.. 

7

The Mariners opened the scoring in the first as Dean Turnlund drew a base on balls. John McCaustlin doubled to left, driving in Turnlund. Mike Fier reached on a dropped third strike and Mike McCallion and Chris Rooney each drew passes forcing in McCaustlin. 

The Pitbulls sent 8 men to the plate in the first and knotted the score at two as Mick Gill delivered a key double to left-center. Mariner pitcher Jim Manfred, struggling with arm discomfort surrendered 2 more runs in the second as Dale Lapic singled home Dan Giesen and Dave Hagene who also had singled.

In the Mariner half of the fourth, Manfred opened with a sharp single to left. He was forced on a ground ball by Scott Rohne. Andy Schmidt hit a potential ground ball that was mis-played with all runners safe. After Turnlund forced Schmidt at 2nd, McCaustlin, Fier and McCallion all singled giving the Mariners four valuable runs and a 6 - 4 lead.

Chris Rooney took over for Manfred in the fourth and slammed the door on the Pitbulls for three solid innings of relief work. Unfortunately, Rooney who had not pitched in seven years, had to leave with a tired arm after completing the sixth inning.

The "wheels fell off" for the Mariners in the bottom of the seventh as the Pitbulls scored 4 time on a "bloop hit" to center, four consecutive walks,  and two solid hits to take the ballgame by a score of 8 - 7. It was the Mariners third "walk-off" loss in 10 days. 

0

The Mariners traveled to Searles to face the Bullheads as both teams struggled to get a full complement of players suited up for the game. The Mariners were looking at their 3rd game in five days.

Mariner lefty Mike Fier and Bullhead veteran Tom Steinbach hooked up in a classic pitchers duel. The Mariners opened the scoring as left fielder Mike McCallion drew a walk to lead off the second inning. Center Fielder John McCaustlin singled with McCallion taking third. Mariner right fielder John Barrett squeezed home McCallion with a perfectly placed bunt to give the Prior Lake team an early 1 - 0 lead.

In the Mariner fourth, McCaustlin and Rohne again drew walks. First baseman, John Anderson drove in McCaustlin with a sharp single to center. Catcher Kevin McDonald was hit by a pitch and second baseman Blake Elliott in a rare start for the Mariners delivered a key line drive single to right scoring Rohne. Anderson was thrown out at the plate attempting to score on the play for the final out of the inning. As it turned out, this completed the scoring for the day as the Mariners held on to come away with a 3 - 0 victory.

Fier was dominant as he allowed 3 hits to load the bases in the first with one out and then recorded two strikeouts to escape untouched with what turned out to be the only serious scoring threat by the Bullheads all afternoon. He went on to allow but two more hits and one walk while striking out a total of nine Bullheads..

6

Due to a field conflict, the Mariners had an opportunity to face the Waconia Islanders at old Wilkommen Park in Young America in an important game for noth teams.

John Barrett got the Mariners going as he led off the game with a single and then stole second. Joe Schultz delivered a single to plate Barrett and Mike Fier followed with a single. Mike McCallion was hit by a pitch to laod the bases and it appeared that the Mariners were about to enjoy a big inning. Veteran Islander pitcher Colin Bender reached back and struck out the next two hitters to ease some of the pressure. First baseman Jim Manfred drove what appeared to be a single only to have Schultz thrown out at the plate for the third out of the inning.

Waconia got on the board in the third when Eric Hemme walked after Mariner pitcher Mike Fier had struck out the first two batters. Dewey Horman folowed with another walk advancing Hemme to second. Larry Heckman singled Hemme home to tie the game as Hormann was caught in a run-down for the final out of the inning

The Mariners took a 2 - 1 lead in the fourth as Matt Moriarity singled, was advanced to third on a hit by Manfred and driven home on a sacrifice fly by Mariner Shortstop Scott Rohne.

In the Islander 6th, Hormann tripled to the gap in right center and was sacrificed home by Jeff Schultz to knot the score at 2 apiece.

Unfortunately, the Mariner bats went silent during the final four innings of the game as Bender faced the minimum of 12 hitters. This set the stage for the Islanders to push across an unearned run in the 8th to come away with a 3 - 2 win.

Fier once again, was outstanding as he allowed but 3 hits and struck out 11 in going the full 8 innings as the Mariners suffered their second one-run "walk off" loss in two nights after having the lead in both games..

6

The Mariners had a date with the Jordan Millers at the historic "Mini-Met" in Jordan in a mid-week clash between two old rivals in the Central Division of the River Valley League.

The Mariners hopped out to an early lead in the second inning on successive singles by Hanson, Moriarity, Manfred, Rohne, Schmitz and Barrett which resulted in a quick 4 - 0 lead.

Mariner starter Jim Manfred worked his way thru the first three innings narrowly escaping disastor as the Millers sent seven men to the plate in the third inning, but managed only 2 runs. Tim Hanson relieved Manfred in the fourth and held the Millers in check in the 4th and 5th.

The Mariners went to work again in their half of the sixth as Kevin McDonald led off with a walk and Scott Rohne was hit by a pitch. Joel Schmitz then executed a perfect sacrifice bunt to advance both runners. Dean Turnlund walked to set the stage for John Barrett and Joe Schultz ro each deliver key 2 run singles to give the Mariners an 8 - 2 lead.

The Millers were not to be denied however, as they turned 2 hits, 2 walks and an error into 3 runs in the bottom of the 6th to cut the lead to 8 - 5. In the bottom of the 7th, 4 more hits netted 3 more runs to tie the game at 8 each.

In the bottom of the 8th, a hit, a sacrifice, an error and 2 more hits brought home what proved to be the winning run in a 9 - 8 "walk-off" win for the Millers and a very disappointing loss for the Mariners.

9

The Northfield Millers traveled to Prior Lake on Thursday, July 15^th to meet the Prior Lake Mariners. The game was special in that it marked the season debut of Mariner veteran Bill Vogel, who turned 88 years old 3 weeks ago. 

Vogel, Mariner DH, opened the game facing Miller left-hander John Grimm, no “spring chicken” himself at 70 years of age. This probably was the oldest pitcher-batter match-up in the history of the game. Fox News (Channel 9) in the Twin Cities was on hand to record the historic event as well as to do do a feature story on Vogel that will air in the next week. 

The Mariners struck first in the opening round with two out as pitcher Mike Fier singled and catcher Mike MacCallion reached on an error by the third-baseman. Big Tim Hanson, Mariner 1^st sacker, delivered a crushing single through the middle to plate 2 runs. 

In the second, the Mariners got going again when John McCaustlin reached on an error, and Scott Rohne walked. Both were advanced a base by a perfect Joel Schmitz sacrifice. Dean Turnland walked and John Anderson, in the game at DH for Vogel delivered a hit to center scoring McCaustlin. Joe Schultz singled driving in Rohne and MacCallion reached on an error to plate Turnland giving the Mariners a comfortable 5 – 0 lead. 

In the Mariner 4^th, Schmitz opened with a walk. John Barrett, running for Schmitz stole second and advanced to third on the overthrow. A single by Turnland scored Barrett and another single by Schultz scored Turnland to make the score 7 – 0. 

The Mariners capped off the scoring in the 5^th as Hanson, Kevin McDonald and John Barrett all drew walks to load the bases. Scott Rohne hit a sac fly to plate Hanson and Dean Turnland delivered the decisive game breaker with a two out double to the gap in right center scoring McDonald and Barrett to end the game via the 10 run rule.

The Mariner defense played errorless ball behind lefty Mike Fier who crafted a neat one-hitter, striking out 4, walking 3 and facing only 19 batters in the shortened contest.

4

The Prior Lake Mariners traveled to New Hope on Wednesday night to face the New Hope Bandits at Ensign Field. 

Mariner lefty Mike Fier allowed 2 hits and in the first inning and then shut the door on the Bandits allowing but two more base runners the rest of the way, one on an error and one on a walk. 

Prior Lake, for it’s part scored 3 runs in the top of the first after two were out as they sent 8 men to the plate. Chris Rooney delivered the big blow, a double to drive in two runs. In the fifth, the Mariners batted 13 men and scored 7 runs. Fier helped his own cause with a two out double to drive in two runs and Center Fielder Matt Moriarity continued his hot hitting with a key single to plate two runs. 

Fier was in control the entire game as he struck out 6, walked only one and stranded four Bandit base runners. Scott Rohne was 2 for 4 and delivered an RBI. Catcher Kevin McDonald also drove in 2 runs with a key single in the 4^th.

9

The Prior Lake Mariners snapped back from a loss at the hands of the  Shakopee Chiefs last week to defeat the Eden Prairie Lion’s Tap nine Sunday night at the new Eden Prairie Stadium. 

The Mariners opened the scoring with a 3 run outburst in the first inning capped by a 2 run double by Matt Moriarity. They added another run in the second as Kevin McDonald drew his first of 3 walks and eventually scored on a single by left-fielder Joe Schultz. In the Mariner 5^th, Mike McCallion and Chris Rooney singled with two outs. Jim Manfred lined a single through the hole at short to drive in McCallion and Moriarity added his 2^nd double of the evening to plate Rooney and give Prior Lake a 6 – 1 advantage. 

The Tap was not to be denied however as they took advantage of 2 Mariner errors, a base on balls and 3 hits to plate 3 runs of their own in the bottem of the 5th. Jim Manfred pitched masterfully in getting out of the jam by getting a popup to the 2^nd baseman for out number 2 and a come backer to the mound to end the threat. 

The Mariners added 2 insurance runs in the 6^th as Mike Fier drove in a run and Chris Rooney was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to complete the scoring for an 8 – 4 win for Prior Lake.

12

The Mariners traveled to Shakopee on Wednesday night and were thoroughly schooled in the art of hitting a baseball by a vastly “overhauled” 2010 Chief squad. 

While the Mariners were able to send 6 men to the plate n the first inning and quickly take a 1 – 0 lead, Shakopee promptly answered with 5 runs of their own in the bottom of the first and were not to be headed for the balance of the evening. 

The Mariners were able to keep the pressure on the Chief’s Brad Keenan with base runners in every inning, however, he was able on each occasion to get out of trouble and keep the Mariners from scoring. 

Mariner pitching surrendered but 2 walks and hit one batter and the defense played errorless ball, but the Chiefs hit the ball very well to all parts of the field and seemed to come up with the big hit when it was needed. Mariner starter Mike Fier was tagged for 7 hits and 7 runs in 3 innings before giving way to Jim Manfred who gave up 6 hits and 6 runs in 2 innings before the game ended by virtue of the 10 run rule.

The Prior Lake Mariners survived a four-run uprising by the Minneapolis Bombers in the 3rd inning and came back with their own six-run outburst in the bottom of the 3rd and went on to gain a 9 - 5 win at Memorial Park in Prior Lake on Sunday afternoon.

The Mariners scored first in inning number one when leadoff hitter Joe Schultz drew a walk, advanced to second and third on infield outs and scored on DH Jim Manfred's bloop single to right.

The Bombers mixed 4 hits with a couple of walks in the 3rd inning to plate 4 runs with the big blows being doubles by Chad Stewart and pitcher Dennis Daas. Stewart's came with the bases loaded scoring Al Diamond and John Weber with Rico getting thrown out at the plate on a relay from Mariner Moriarity, to Joel Schmitz to Catcher Kevin McDonald. The Mariners answered with six hits in the home half of the 3rd, with key doubles from Tim Hanson, John Anderson and Scott Rohne.

Veteran Mark Schroeder came on in the 5th inning to retire 9 of the 10 batters he faced, allowing only a scratch single to record the save.  

The Prior Lake Mariners opened their regular league season on Friday night with an impressive win over the visiting Belle Plaine Gray Tigers. Jim Manfred led the way on the mound and at the plate. He was 4 for 4 at the plate including a long home run and turned in a masterful 3 hit complete game striking out 7 and walking only one along the way. 

The Mariners sent 8 men to the plate in the 3^rd after two were out scoring 5 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks to take a commanding 5 to 1 lead. In the fifth the Mariners took advantage of 4 walks and chipped in with 3 timely hits to plate 4 more runs extending the lead to 9 – 1. Manfred capped off the Mariner scoring with a long solo home run over the left field wall in the sixth. 

Every Mariner scored at least one run with the exception of catcher John Barrett. Team RBI leader Dean Turnland drove 2 more runs across giving him 4 for the 2010 season. 

So far in 2010, the Mariners are playing excellent defense allowing but one (unearned) run and committing a single error. On the offensive side of the game, they have struck out only 3 times, taken advantage of 19 walks offered by their opponents and scored an average of 9.5 runs per game. Mariner pitchers have struck out 16, walked only 5, allowed only 7 hits in 13 innings so far in 2010.

Veteran lefty, Mike Fier pitched the first 5 innings, striking out 8,walking 3 and hitting 2 batters while allowing just 3 hits. He was followed to the mound by Joe Schultz in the 6th and Joel Schmitz in the 7th kept the shutout intact.

The Mariners scored in the 2nd as John Anderson reached on an error and was driven home by rookie John Barrett's single to right field. Rookie right-fielder Matt Moriarity operned the 3rd with a walk. Following a flyout to center by Joe Schultz, Rohne, Fier and MacCallion all walked and Anderson, Barrett, Schmitz and Turnland all came up with big hits to plate a total of 7 runs and break the game wide open for the home team.

The Mariners open league play on June 4th with a home game against the Belle Plaine Gray Tigers when they hope to avenge an early 2009 season loss in Belle Plaine..