Minot's Legion baseball team rolled into Bismarck onThursday with all the momentum of a lignite-laden freight train.

The Vistas were on a nine-game winning streak, a stretch in which they'd scored 115 runs. They left town in reverse gear, stung by 6-1 and 3-1 setbacks.

Minot coach Todd Larson said the Vistas didn't shift into reverse. They were sent into reverse by Bismarck pitchers Jon Hausauer and Zach Klabo.

"No. 1, you've got to tip your hat to their two pitchers. They're basic fastball-change-up pitchers and for some unexplained reason we weren't able to put the ball in play," Larson said.

"Ithought our pitchers (Jordan Martinson and Zac Elgie) pitched well,"Larson added. "We certainly didn't help ourselves by making errors in the first couple of innings that gave them some extra swings."

Martinson has been unadulterated poison for Minot foes this year. The big right-hander went 7-0 in high school baseball and won his first four Legion starts.

The Governors found an antidote to Martinson's venom in the first game, though, roughing him up for an unaccustomed 13 hits at Municipal Ballpark. That was enough for a 6-1 Western Division victory.

Governors first baseman Justin Connell reached Martinson for three hits and three RBIs. Connell said Bismarck was ready to do business against the Vistas, annually one of North Dakota's top teams.

"We just kind of came to play. When we play Minot we just bring something different to the ballpark," Connell said. "You've got to get on top early and not let them back in the game."

The Governors followed Connell's recipe perfectly, jumping to a 5-1 lead in the first three innings.

Elgie gave the Vistas a short-lived 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, lofting a 0-1 pitch over the left field fence for a long two-out solo homer. The bomb was Elgie's 20th of the season.

"I left a change-up up and he made a good swing on it," said winning pitcher Jon Hausauer.

Some loose Minot defense got Bismarck going and the Governors took full advantage.

Minot shortstop Ryne Hornecker booted Dustin Wenzel's two-out grounder in the bottom of the first inning to keep the Govs alive. Zach Wentz, Torey Bohan and Justin Connell responded with successive singles, Wentz knocking in Wenzel and Connell plating Wentz for a 2-1 lead.

Bismarck made it 3-1 with another unearned run in the second inning. Jeremy Campbell opened with a bunt single and third baseman Clay Kallais sent him all the way to third with a wide throw on the play. A passed ball by Dane Towery scored Campbell.

Singles by Wenzel, Wentz and Connell enabled Bismarck to open a 5-1 lead in the third. Connell singled home Wenzel and Wentz scored on Matt Loomis' sacrifice fly.

That gave the crafty Hausauer more than enough breathing room. He struck out only two, but kept the Vistas off balance for seven innings with an annoying combination of fastballs, curves and change-ups. "I just tried to keep the ball down from then on," he said, looking back on Elgie's round-tripper. "And I pretty much did."

As the victory loomed ahead, Hausauer got tougher and tougher. The right-hander retired 12 of the final 14 men he faced and coaxed Jordan Huettl into a sixth inning groundball double play.

Connell lauded Hausauer's effort. "He's a really good spot pitcher and our defense was pretty sound. … All-around I think the team played a very sound game," Connell observed.

Klabo picked up where Hausauer left off in the second game, holding Minot to three hits in 5 2-3 innings before turning the proceedings over to ZachWentz.

Wentz closed it out efficiently, retiring five straight men. The right-hander earned his fourth save.

Klabo, a right-hander, walked five and stranded seven men and had two runners on when Wentz came in.

Bismarck coach Mike Skytland had nothing but praise for Klabo, who threw 78 pitches.

"That was his first conference start and he was in control. He was throwing all his pitches for strikes,"Skytland said. "He just did a good job of letting his defense play behind him."

Skytland said Wentz was originally scheduled to start one of the games. That went by the boards when Wentz pitched in relief at Dickinson onTuesday and threw from the mound in Wednesday's tryout camp at Mandan. That put him in a relief role for Minot.

"Our starters did a great job so we didn't have to bring him in until the sixth inning of the second game," Skytland noted.

Hausauer's sacrifice fly gave Bismarck a 1-0 lead in the second inning of the nightcap.

Teddy Anderson's RBIsingle gave Minot a short-lived 1-1 tie in the third.

In the home half of the inning, Wentz, Bohan and Tyler Johnson singled to put Bismarck on top to stay. Wentz rode home on Johnson's Baltimore chopper into left field.

Wentz doubled and Bohan followed with a run-scoring single to make it 3-1 in the fifth.

Skytland wasn't taking any bows after Bismarck improved to 8-2 in the division with 10 to play. Still, he admitted the league-leading Governors gained significant ground with the sweep.

"As far as the standings this sure makes things easier,"Skytland said. "… But we've got some other big games coming up. We've got Williston in a week."

Larson, meanwhile, had no doubts that Bismarck had accomplished something important.

"This has got to put Bismarck as the favorite,"Larson said. "Williston still has a ton of games to play, so the jury is still out on them."

Larson said his team is certainly going to be heard from as time goes by, but admits the Vistas are in a tenuous position in the standings.

"We've won the west the last six or seven years, but I can't see that happening now. This certainly puts Bismarck in the driver's seat,"he said.

Bismarck 6,Minot 1

Minot 100 000 0 - 1 5 2

Bismarck 212 010 x - 6 13 1

Jordan Martinson and Dane Towery; Jon Hausauer and Torey Bohan. W - Hausauer, 3-2. L - Martinson, 4-1. HR - Minot, Zac Elgie.

Highlights: M - Ryan Bollinger 2-for-2, double; Elgie 1-for-3, solo HR, first inning. B - Dustin Wenzel 2-for-4, 2 R; Zach Wentz 3-for-3, 3 R, 1 RBI; Bohan 2-for-2; Justin Connell 3-for-3, 3 RBIs; Hausauer 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO, 30 balls, 60 strikes.

Bismarck 3, Minot 1

Minot 001 000 0 - 1 3 0

Bismarck 011 010 x - 3 8 1

Zac Elgie and Dane Towery, Kory Houston (6); ZachKlabo, Zach Wentz (6) and Tyler Johnson, Torey Bohan (6). W - Klabo, 4-0.L- Elgie, 2-2.HR- None.

Highlights:M-Teddy Anderson 1-for-3, 1 RBI;Elgie 7 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 SO. B-Bohan 2-for-2, 1 RBI; Johnson 2-for-3, 1 R, 1 RBI; Wentz 2-for-2, double, 2 R; 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0R, 0 BB, 1 SO; Klabo 5.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 5 BB, 0 SO.

Records:Minot 6-5 Western Division, 27-9 overall;Bismarck 8-2, 18-7.