Jeff Budlong, sports editor

The weather at Tuesday&8217;s American Legion baseball doubleheader between Albert Lea and Stewartville went from sun drenched to drenching rain, but Post 56&8217;s bats remained silent throughout.

Albert Lea managed just nine hits in two games and lost both 3-2 and 7-3.

&8220;We just couldn&8217;t get any hits, our bats were dead all night tonight,&8221; said Albert Lea head coach Jack Woodside who was filling in for Kendall Langseth. &8220;It wasn&8217;t until the seventh inning of both games that we got anything going and it showed.&8221;

Nothing Stewartville did in either game was overpowering, but Post 56 could never muster much of a response. A.L. struck out 13 times in the two games.

Stewartville scored first in game one putting one run on the board in the first. Albert Lea nearly tied the game in the bottom of the frame as Levi Langseth dug for home on a Taylor Ignaszewski hit, but he was tagged out at home.

Jared Gavle led off the second reaching on an error for Albert Lea before scoring on a Stewartville miscue.

Joel Eisenbraun pitched well for Post 56 allowing just four hits in the first four innings, but Stewartville got all the offense it would need in the fifth. Three straight hits loaded the bases and an error allowed two runs to score giving Stewartville the 3-1 lead.

Eisenbraun, who threw a complete game with four strikeouts, tried to help his own cause in the seventh leading off with a double. He scored on a Langseth hit, but that is as close as Albert Lea got as the game ended with the next batter striking out.

Stewartville turned a leadoff single, a stolen base and a passed ball into a run in the first inning of the nightcap, and tacked on three more in the third thanks to three hits and an error.

Mitch Wenum pitched well despite giving up six runs in five innings and striking out six for Post 56.

&8220;Both Joel and Mitch pitched good games getting knocked around a little bit in one inning,&8221; Woodside said.

Albert Lea did not collect its first hit of the game until the fourth when Ignaszewski roped a single.

Post 56 was unable to put any runs on the board until the seventh when Jared Matson and Jordan Hanson singled. Matson scored on a wild pitch and Hanson scored on an error. Anthony Tippet drew a walk and later scored in the inning.

&8220;We need to spend some more time in the cage because a lot of these guys are swinging at balls that aren&8217;t strikes,&8221; Woodside said. &8220;We are getting behind in the count and getting frustrated.&8221;

Albert Lea is back in action tomorrow when it hosts the Rochester A&8217;s for one game beginning at 7 p.m. at Hayek Field.

Game One

Stewartville 3, Albert Lea 2

Stewart.

100

020

0 &045; 3

8

4

Albert Lea

010

000

1 &045; 2

4

1

WP &045; Nate Nelson, LP &045; Joel Eisenbraun

Game Two

Stewartville 7, Albert Lea 3

Stewart.

103

111

0 &045; 7

8

4

Albert Lea

000

000

3 &045; 3

5

0

WP &045; Matt Smith, LP &045; Mitch Wenum