MINNEAPOLIS — The Ellsworth baseball team started its season strong March 28. In the first doubleheader of the season against the Minneapolis Lions, the Bearcats won both games, 13-11 and 15-5.

The first game got off to a lukewarm start. The Bearcats didn’t score any runs in the top of the first and it only lasted four plays. In the bottom, the Lions scored a run.

The next inning seemed like it would be much the same as first. The Bearcats got two quick outs. Something changed after the second out though, and the Bearcats locked in. It started with junior Ethan Tully scoring a run. After that, freshmen Johnny Barta and Rett Bohl also scored. Finally, senior Dax Leiker scored. This brought the scoreboard to 4-1.

In the bottom of the second, Bearcat pitcher, freshman Bo Kyler, prevented the Lions from scoring.

The next two innings were similar to each other. In both, the Cats scored twice in the top — senior Gavin Moyer and Tully in the third inning, Leiker and freshman Carson Jacobs in the fourth — and in both of the bottoms, the Lions were unable to score. The scoreboard sat at 8-1.

But just when the Bearcats’ lead was starting to look ridiculous, the pattern was broken. In the top of the fifth, junior Jackson Minear, Barta and Leiker each scored runs. This time though, the Lions retaliated. They scored five runs and started to gain momentum, ending the inning 11-6. If there was a comeback in the works, then this was the start.

In the sixth inning, the Cats went back to the old reliable, scoring two runs. The deeds were done by Tully and junior Tucker Goss. The Lions had had a taste of blood, though, and in the bottom, they score five runs yet again. The score now sat at 13-11. The Lions had gone from basically being locked out of the game, to being on the cusp of victory. They just needed to continue their streak.

In the seventh inning, the Bearcats did a horrible job of hedging their bets. They didn’t score a single run, leaving the path open for the Lions to potentially win the first game of the season.

Then, an extremely anticlimactic thing happened. The Lions rung up three outs almost immediately, with two ground outs and a strikeout happening over the course of just four plays. The Lions saw the train to victory pull out of the station without them.

The second game started nearly identical to the first, with the top of the first being extremely short and the Lions scoring a run in the bottom.

The top of the second was where a major change occurred. The Bearcats had their awakening much more quickly and far more extremely. It started with Moyer scoring only two plays in. Then Tully, Barta, Bohl and Leiker scored. In the bottom, Moyer pitched and the Lions were unable to even try to recoup their losses. The scoreboard sat at 5-1, with the Cats in the lead.

The Bearcats were able to pull the exact same maneuver in the top of the third when Kyler, Moyer, Tully, Goss and Minear all scored. The Lions were booted from the bottom after only four plays, and the score was 10-1.

The game calmed down for the Cats in the fourth as only Tully and Goss scored. The Lions actually mounted a retaliation this time, and put three runs on the board. The score was 12-4 at the end of the fourth inning.

The fifth inning proved to be the last of the game. The Bearcats had Jacobs, Kyler and Tully all score. The Lions scored three runs in the fifth, a respectable amount, but unfortunately leaving them 10 points behind. The mercy rule was invoked, and the game ended early.

The Cats’ season record is 2-0. Their next action will be Friday, April 4 as they play the Beloit Trojans at home.