VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – The Valley City Post 60 Royals closed out their regular season on Monday at Charlie Brown Field in Valley City. The Royals got tremendous pitching from starter Ethan Miller and then Devyn Thornton to pick up the 7-3 win in the first game of their doubleheader.

Ethan Miller would get the start on the mound for Valley City and the right hander would sit down the Comets 1-2-3 in the top of the 1st inning with a pair of striking along the way. The scoring in the game started in the bottom of the 2nd inning. Broden Muske would get on base with a 1-out double. Joe Cummings and Max Mehus would also reach base, and all 3 Royals would come in to score in the inning giving Valley City the 3-0 lead after 2. Fargo would get one back in the top of the 3rd on a ground out by Matt Nelsen making it  a 3-1 VC lead. The Comets would then tack on another in the top of the 4th inning to cut the Royals lead to 3-2. Then the bottom of the 4th inning happened. In the home half of the inning Valley City exploded for 4 runs. Robert Fischer would lead the inning off with a single and then Adam Bitz would drop down a bunt and reach base putting 2 on with nobody out. Braxton Jorissen would walk to load the bases and the Gavin Gerhardt would provide an RBI single scoring Fischer giving VC the 4-2 lead. Devyn Thornton would walk with the bases loaded bringing in Adam Bitz and extending the Royals lead to 5-2., Joe Cummings the same story scoring Jorissen (6-2 VC). Max Mehus would cap off the inning with an RBI single of his own scoring Gerhardt and padding the lead to 7-2. Fargo would score a run in the top of the 6th inning making it a 7-3 VC lead but that is all their offense could muster up on Monday.

The story of the game for Valley City was their pitching. In the pregame show coach Carpenter relayed that he wanted his “ace” Ethan Miller to go 3-innings to start the game that way he can get some work in and be ready for the regional tournament later this week in Wahpeton. Miller provided his coach with just that as the right hander went 3 innings giving up just 2 hits, 1 run, while striking out 4. The only other pitcher Valley City used was lefty Devyn Thornton. the left hander pitched the final 4 innings giving up 4 hits, 2 runs, and striking out 6.