Chickasaws win ranked battle

Keegan Tenge knew he had hit the ball well Friday night, yet the New Hampton junior was still in for a surprise.“It felt great coming off the bat, and I figured it was going to bounce off the fence for a double,” he said. “So I was digging hard, and then I saw the guys signal homer. I didn’t think I had hit it high enough.”Tenge’s line drive grand slam home run in the third inning Friday keyed the third-ranked Chickasaws to a 10-9 victory over second-ranked Clear Lake as New Hampton finished the regular season with a 27-4 record.“I’ve never hit a home run, unless you count slow-pitch softball,” Tenge said with a laugh, “so this is all pretty new to me.”Tenge may be the Chickasaws’ No. 9 hitter, but he’s not your prototypical last-guy-in-the-lineup. He finished the regular season with a .270 batting average and was fourth on the team with 30 RBIs.“He’s one of those guys who always wants to take extra swings, always is working to be better,” New Hampton coach Cory McDonald said. “He hit a rough spot there, and some guys would say these extra swings aren’t worth it. But not Keegan, not a lot of guys on our team. They could have said the heck with it, but they keep working.”New Hampton got off to a fast start Friday as Alex Troyna ripped a three-run home run — and Zach Wemark had an RBI double to give the Chickasaws a 4-0 first inning lead.More details may be found in the July 12 Tribune.