Set against a scenic backdrop of trees and tucked into a nook of the Minnesota River Valley is the Chaska Athletic Park, where the hometown high school baseball team continues to paint their masterpiece season. 

“We really take a lot of pride in our field,” Hawks coach Craig Baumann said. “We love coming down here and playing, and these guys do a great job maintaining our field.” 

The “guys” Baumann lauds are his players, who dutifully rushed onto the field to lay down protective tarps over the pitcher’s mound and the dirt surrounding home plate after lightning and a sudden rain shower shortened Chaska’s game with Class 3A, Section 2 rival Eden Prairie on Thursday to five innings.

The matchup’s length had little to do with the outcome, however, as the Hawks took control early with three runs in the first inning and then kept the Eagles caged en route to the 7-1 victory.

Junior pitcher Luke Roskam gave up just three hits and one earned run in earning the complete-game victory for Chaska, ranked No. 2 by Let’s Play Baseball.

The lone run the No. 5 Eagles scored came in the second inning when senior catcher Tyler Safgren drilled the first pitch he saw over the left field wall for a solo home run.

That type of start to an inning could shake the confidence of most pitchers, but Roskam takes a perceptive approach to his miscues on the mound. 

“Some guys are going to put good swings on the ball, and that’s what happened,” Roskam said. “You’ve just got to go back to work and get the next guy.”

That “take it one step at a time” philosophy is embraced by the team and echoed by Baumann when describing Roskam as a “bulldog” more than once.

“He wants to get after guys,” Baumann said. 

Roskam, a member of Chaska’s varsity squad since his freshman year, also delivered at the plate Thursday night, going 3-for-3 with two RBI. 

He his part of a talented and experienced roster that has helped the Hawks to a 14-1 overall record and to the top spot in the Metro West Conference standings team with a 10-1 mark. 

Chaska has won its last five games and now has two victories over Eden Prairie. The Hawks have wins against several other ranked Class 3A teams including No. 7 Chanhassen, No. 17 East Ridge and No. 14 Bloomington Jefferson, which also happens to be the only team to defeat Chaska this season.

All the success has fans hoping the Hawks can make their first state tournament appearance since 2008. 

A key piece to that postseason puzzle is senior infielder Derek Annett, who had an RBI triple and scored twice in the win over the Eagles. 

Annett led Chaska’s hockey team in scoring this winter with 35 goals and 56 points.

And he’s ready to transfer that success to the diamond after struggling the last two seasons. “Last year and the year before I had back problems because I was going from hockey to baseball,” Annett said. “But this year I’m healthy.”

While a deep postseason run is certainly a possibility for the Hawks, Roskam deflects the notion that Chaska is focusing on the postseason. Instead, he believes in the team’s doctrine.  

“That’s our strategy, right there: one game at a time,” Roskam said. “You can’t overlook anyone, because anyone can come out and beat you.”

Chaska junior Luke Roskam went 3-for-3 with two RBI singles to lead the Hawks to a 7-1, five-inning victory over Eden Prairie in a rain-shortened matchup featuring Class 3A, Section 2 rivals Thursday night at Athletic Park in Chaska. 

Roskam also started the game on the mound and earned the win after surrendering just three hits in pitching a complete game. 

The Hawks (14-1), ranked No. 2 in the largest class by Let’s Play Baseball, didn’t wait to take control, staking a lead in their first at-bats. Senior infielder Derek Annett hit an RBI triple and later scored as Chaska built a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning.

A home run from senior catcher Tyler Safgren in the top of the second helped the No. 5-3A Eagles (10-6) trimmed the deficit, but the Hawks answered with one run in the bottom of the inning and then extended their lead with two runs in the third and another in the fourth.

Senior outfielder Justin Arnold and junior outfielder Connor Ploen each finished with an RBI for Chaska, which also recorded two runs on wild pitches.

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