Blues win Mid-Pen Championship

The Kingsford Blues were the #3 seed heading into the Mid-Pen Conference Tournament on Saturday.

After three straight wins, the third seeded Blues finished out the weekend as the #1 team in the conference, winning the Mid-Pen Title.

Kingsford defeated Hancock 12-6 on Sunday. Hancock led 4-2 in the fourth inning, before the Blues exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the fourth, capped off by a grand slam from Cole Tengesdahl.

“Our pitching just did an outstanding job this weekend,” said Blues manager Kevin Murdock. “A good defense will stop a good offense. I thought we did a great job of pounding the strike zone and playing defense behind that,” added Murdock.

“I knew the batter before (C.J.) Qualley, and he (the pitcher) threw him four straight balls. When I came out there, I knew he was bound to throw me a pitch right there,” said Tengesdahl about his grand slam in the fourth inning.

“I like to swing at the first pitch, so I just took advantage of that and I took it out of the park. It just felt great,” Tengesdahl went on to say.

Both Hancock and Kingsford, along with a handful of other U.P. teams, will play in the Zone Tournament next week in Menominee.

The top three teams in that tournament will advance to the State Tournament in Hudson.

The Kingsford Blues are the defending Tier II State Champions, after winning the tournament last year in Marquette.