The Kalispell Lakers AA rallied back from a 2-0 deficit to beat the Mission Valley Mariners A 5-4 in a nonconference American Legion baseball matchup at Griffin Field on Saturday afternoon.

Lakers pitcher Justin Wallace threw 134 pitches through six innings to earn the win. He allowed five hits while striking out five Mariners.

“He persevered. He got out of some tough situations,” Lakers head coach Ryan Malmin said.

“His first two runs were on an error, a wild pitch and a poor location on an 0-2 pitch, so I thought he threw pretty well today.”

It was Mission Valley right fielder Jarod Young who took Wallace’s 0-2 pitch for a two-run double in the first inning.

Bransen Krebs, on the mound for the Mariners, preserved the early 2-0 lead into the third inning until the Lakers got hot.

Second baseman Justin Rich and shortstop Walker Malmin both drew walks with the base loaded for RBIs in the bottom of the third. Levi Brenneman drove in a run with a base hit in the same inning as the Lakers put up four runs on two hits.

Both teams went scoreless until the bottom of the fifth inning, when first baseman Andy Bemis drove in what would prove to be the winning run, a double down the left-field line that landed just inside the chalk.

Walker Malmin, who reached second on a wild pitch after his base hit to right field, scored on Bemis’ double, and the Lakers led 5-2.

The Mariners threatened in the top of the sixth, scoring two runs on one hit and an error to trail 5-4, but Wallace got out of the inning with the lead still intact.

Brandon Maassen came in to pitch the seventh for the Lakers, and his breaking ball caught the outside corner, striking out Mission Valley’s Derek Peel to earn the save and give the Lakers a one-run victory.

“Brandon did a great job,” Malmin said.

“He’s improving with his mentality, being consistent with his routine and he’s really improved his mechanics so we have a lot of confidence in what he can do on the mound for us.”

Maassen pitched through a heavy rain during the seventh inning, soaking the field enough for the umpires to call the second game of what was scheduled to be a doubleheader.

The Mariners will look to rebound at home against the Kalispell Lakers A squad with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. today. The Lakers AA are home today against the Bitterroot Red Sox for a 1 p.m. start.

Mission Valley 200 002 0 — 4 6 3

Kalispell 004 010 x — 5 5 2

Bransen Krebs, Derek Peel (3) and Alex Killian. Justin Wallace, Brandon Maassen (7) and Adam Frandsen. L — Krebs. W — Wallace.

MISSION VALLEY — Trevor Paro 0-2, Zeke Webster-Yaqui 1-4, Alex Killian 0-3, Bransen Krebs 0-4, Jarod Young 1-4, Jacob Harrod 1-3, Cole Snyder 1-2, Aaron Rassmussen 0-1, Derek Peel 2-4, Brennan Andrews 0-3.

KALIPSELL — Jake Barstow 0-4, Walker Malmin 1-2, Justin Rich 0-3, Adam Frandsen 0-3, Brandon Maassen 1-3, Andy Bemis 1-3, Levi Brenneman 1-3, Sam Crompton 0-3, Brett Thomas 1-2,

2B — Peel, Young. Bemis. RBIs — Young 2. Bemis, Frandsen, Brenneman, Rich, Malmin.