Minot Vistas third baseman Tegan Schindler throws the ball over to first for a putout during Game 1 of a doubleheader against West Fargo on Thursday, June 11, at Corbett Field. Mike Kraft/MDN

Fresh off winning the Border Battle tournament trophy over the weekend in Mandan, the Minot Vistas Legion baseball team returned home to welcome an opponent who knows plenty about winning championship hardware on the biggest of.

The Vistas opened up their conference schedule against West Fargo, the two-time defending state champion and winners of four of the last five state titles in a rematch of the opening round of last year’s state tournament, won by the Patriots.

After more than six hours and two weather delays, the Vistas and Patriots came away with a series split. West Fargo took the lead late in a 6-5 victory in the opener before the Vistas forced extra innings with a three-run seventh and walked off in the eighth on a sacrifice fly from Tegan Schindler for a 5-4 win in the nightcap.

“We talk all the time about the standard we need to have to compete with these teams on the east side,” Vistas coach Pat Arnston said. “Nobody has won a state title besides the team we just beat and Fargo Post 2 since 2014. If we want to reach any type of goal, it’s going to have to go through these guys.”

Having to begin their conference slate with the Patriots was tough enough for the Vistas, but they also found themselves battling Mother Nature in Game 1. The first pitch was delayed by more than 20 minutes due to heavy rain, but the late start didn’t bother the Vistas early.

Minot plated a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning on RBI singles from Oliver Deschamp and Drew Jordan. Remington Anderson led off the inning with a double and scored on Deschamp’s base hit.

The Patriots responded with two runs of their own in the second to draw even. Brody Strahm and Austin Ohleen both scored on wild pitches.

The teams exchanged runs in the third and fourth before West Fargo took the lead for good in the fifth. Max Zenker put the Patriots in front 5-4 with a single to right that was misplayed, allowing Landon Zink to score all the way from first and send Zenker to third. Jake Dangerud laid down a sacrifice bunt to score Zenker.

Drew Jordan got Minot within a run with an RBI single to center before the skies once again opened and caused a 30-minute delay.

During weather delays, Arnston said sometimes it’s best to just let them focus on something other than the game.

“You have to let them go downstairs and be kids and listen to music and play games on their phones,” Arnston said. “If you don’t turn it off, it’s a lot harder to maintain that focus, so you have to go let them think about something else during that window and then once you get them back, we turn it back on.”

West Fargo’s Caden Rademacher came in to pitch following resumption of play and proceeded to strikeout Schindler and Gannon Hedberg to end the inning.

The Vistas (6-3) went down in order the rest of the way following the delay.

Anderson led Minot’s offense with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate, scoring twice. Brody Mueller, Deschamp and Jordan all had multi-hit games. Deschamp and Jordan both recorded two RBIs. Hedberg hit a solo home run in the fourth.

Joshua Gustafson doubled and drove in a run for the Patriots.

Despite a long day on the diamond, the Vistas decided that six hours playing baseball wasn’t enough for the day and decided to extend it a bit more in Game 2.

Minot entered the bottom of the seventh inning trailing 4-1, missing out on the clutch hit all game. The Vistas found it in their last chance to extend the game. Mueller led off the frame with a double to left. A walk to Jordan and a single by Schindler loaded the bases. With two outs, Mason Stewart drove in a pair of runs with a single to left. Peyton House tied the game on a line drive to left, scoring Schindler.

“West Fargo is a good program, but we weren’t super happy with our effort as far as making things hard on them, so to stay in it mentally and not move on and give ourselves a chance was very valuable,” Arnston said. “That will be a good thing for us in the long run.”

Hedberg came in to pitch the eighth and struck out all three batters he faced.

Deschamp singled to open the bottom of the eighth and moved into scoring position on a ground out from Mueller. Jordan was intentionally walked and Hedberg drew a traditional free base to load the bases. Schindler ended it on the next at-bat, lifting a 1-1 pitch deep enough to center to allow Landyn McGhee to tag and score the winning run.

The Patriots (8-4) broke a 1-1 tie with three runs in the sixth. Luke Finn gave West Fargo a 2-1 lead on a sacrifice fly and Jake Dangerud extended the lead with an RBI single. An error at second base allowed West Fargo’s fourth run of the contest.

Mueller finished 3-for-5 with a double and a run scored. Mason Stewart drove in a pair of runs in his lone at-bat. Minot’s 7-8-9 hitters had four of the team’s five RBIs.

Mueller pitched the first 5 1/3 innings, allowing four runs on six hits. Stewart and Hedberg pitched the final 2 2/3 innings, allowing two hits and no runs.

The Vistas outhit the Patriots in both games, 10-6 in the opener and 11-8 in the nightcap.

Minot hosts the Bismarck Governors for a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. on Sunday, June 14, at Corbett Field.