Mother Nature tried to put a damper on Mon-Clair League baseball action over the weekend, but some teams were able to play Sunday following cancellations Friday and Saturday.

The Valmeyer Lakers (8-2) entered play Sunday with a slim one game lead over the Waterloo Millers in the Monroe Division and played host to the Edwardsville Mavericks (6-4) at Borsch Memorial Park.

The Lakers found themselves trailing early in game one against the Mavericks, who opened up a 4-1 lead on the Lakers after three innings. Valmeyer rallied in the sixth after two batters reached on singles and Matt Reinholz hit a three-run homer to left to tie it, 4-4.

But Edwardsville answered back in the top of the seventh with four singles in a row to take a 6-4 lead and the game.

Valmeyer struck first in the second game, getting a run in the bottom of the second on an RBI by Kyle Dermody for a 1-0 lead.

The Mavericks tied the game at 1-1 in the third, but the Lakers would not be denied. They scored a run in the fourth on an RBI by Chris Rohlfing, then added two more in the fifth on a balk that scored a runner from third and an RBI by Jake Degener as Valmeyer went on to take the game, 5-2.

Dylan Skinner currently leads the Lakers hitters with a .471 average. Lefty D.J. Dillenberger leads the Valmeyer pitchers with a 1.17 ERA.

“We have a very young team this year, but so far they have surprised me,” Lakers coach Dennis Pieper said. “Our pitching has done very well, the defense has been solid and we have been getting very timely hitting. If we can keep our pitching healthy, I believe we can contend for the division.”

Weather permitting, the Lakers will host the St. Louis Spikes for a Saturday doubleheader at 1:30 p.m., and on Sunday will travel to Whitey Herzog Field for a doubleheader against the Belleville Rockies.

Meanwhile, the Millers continue to stay hot, taking both games from the Fairview Heights Redbirds at SPPS Field on Sunday.

Waterloo held on for a hard-fought 2-1 win in game one of the doubleheader. Starter Ian Miller pitched five innings of no-hit ball for the win. This followed his no-hitter the week before. The Redbirds loaded the bases in the sixth with no outs, but the Millers defense and pitcher Brandon Musso held Fairview Heights to just one run.

“Miller is a very good pitcher. I had never seen him pitch before he joined us. He has some very good stuff,” Millers manager Vern Moehrs said of his young pitcher.

Waterloo easily took the second game, scoring five runs in the fifth with two outs. John Auble picked up the win on the mound. With Valmeyer losing earlier in the day, the Millers moved into a tie with the Lakers for first place in the Monroe Division.

Jeremiah Bergheger had a big day at the plate, going 4-for-5 in the two games for Waterloo. Jake Frierderich continues to have a hot bat for Waterloo, hitting .464, while Auble (2 wins, 1.00 ERA) and Musso (1 win, 1.17 ERA) lead the way in pitching.

“We are playing very well.” Moehrs said. “The league is very tight now. All the teams are competitive and that makes it tough to win games. You have to come ready to play every game.”

Waterloo travels to Whitey Herzog Field for two games Saturday against Belleville, and will host the Columbia Saints at SPPS Field on Sunday.

Defending Monroe Division winner Millstadt VFW evened its record at 5-5 on Sunday, taking two games from the O’Fallon Blaze at Mueth Field as they try to climb back into the race after getting off to a slow start.

Millstadt took game one from the Blaze, 5-3, then held on for a close 2-1 win in the second game.

Luke Matecki leads the Millstadt hitters with a .407 average, with Caleb Tatum (2 wins, 1.00 ERA) and Sam Lidisky (2 wins, 1.17 ERA) heading the pitching staff.

Millstadt plays Columbia at Kleinschmidt Field on Saturday, and on Sunday will play Edwardsville in Bethalto.

Rain got the best of Kleinschmidt Field over the weekend, as the games between the Columbia Saints (1-7) and St. Louis Printers were rained out. No make-up date has been confirmed yet.