RAPID CITY - Prior Lake, Minn., bounced back from a rough opening loss on Wednesday night of the Dr. James "Pev" Evans Tournament with a 10-1 win in five innings over the Sturgis Titans on Thursday at Fitzgerald Stadium.

Prior Lake was two-hit on Wednesday as Rapid City Post 22 bettered the Minnesota club by a score of 7-1. Prior Lake was much better on Thursday as they tried to force Sturgis starter Michael Baldwin to beat them.

"We sat on the fastball," Prior Lake head coach Bill Reed said. "He was a little wild so we didn't chase. We just sat back and zone hit all day."

That strategy worked well for Prior Lake as they jumped on Sturgis early, scoring three runs in the top of the first inning to take control of the game. The Minnesota team then scored four more runs in the top of the third inning to really put the game away. Prior Lake wasn't particularly explosive in scoring its runs but it was patient, using walks and wild pitches to load the bases before scoring on timely hits.

"It really was the first and third innings," Sturgis head coach Nic Ewing said. "(Baldwin) pitched some good innings too, but he had a rough start in those two innings and kind of lost his confidence. He just had a hard time finding the zone today."

The Prior Lake team pushed three runs across in the top of the fifth inning to make it a 10-0 game before Sturgis scored its lone run of the contest in the bottom of the frame. Sturgis head coach Nic Ewing saw some things that he hopes his team can build on as the tournament progresses.

"We did a better job in the fifth of making adjustments at the plate," Ewing said. "We got some hits there and they were all straight back up the middle or to right field. That's something that we should have probably figured out a little sooner, when a guy is pitching you outside repeatedly, but we made some adjustments even if they were a little late. This whole thing is going to be an educational process for us."

The Titans dropped to 9-21 with the loss while Prior Lake moved to 12-12 with the win.

The game was over when …

A wild pitch allowed Prior Lake to score the game's fourth run in the third inning, followed by a two-run double by Nick Reed to make it 6-0. Pat McDonald followed with a single to make it 7-0 after three.

Thursday's MVP …

Prior Lake 15-year-old lefthander Brian Dickinson spaced out seven hits and a run over five innings after he was given a 3-0 cushion to work with before ever stepping onto the field.

On deck …

The tournament continues today with Sturgis taking on Mitchell at 9:30 a.m. and Gillette, Wyo., at noon. Prior Lake will play Bozeman, Mont., at 5 p.m.