Carter Haala takes the mound for the Greyhounds baseball team, while his twin sister Megan Haala steps into the pitching circle for the softball team. They may not hit off a tee or go to the park together as much as they used to, but they have still manage to support and impress each other while leading their respective teams to repeat strong seasons in 2023.

Carter Haala is turning in an ERA of 1.64 this season, down from last season’s 2.44 ERA. He also has 34 strikeouts in 42 2/3 innings of work.

Megan Haala has a 2.18 ERA this season and 65 strikeouts in 77 innings of work. She is also one her team’s top hitters this year with a .407 batting average and a team-leading 21 RBIs.

Growing up together, the two first shared a diamond as kids in tee ball.

Staff photo by Travis Rosenau New Ulm Cathedral’s Carter Haala pitches during a prep baseball game with Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s at Mueller Park on April 12.

“We always played the Park and Rec tee ball, and stuff like that, we played that together for how many years in a row growing up,” Carter Haala said. “And then we would always play catch outside, too, with either like my dad or my mom or just us two, so we’ve been doing that for forever basically.”

As two of their squad’s leading pitchers, the journey to becoming a pitcher mainly revolved around helping their teams out where they best fit.

“It kind of just came to me,” Megan Haala said. “I was on a team and we didn’t have a pitcher, and they were like, ‘Oh, you should try it.’ Then I tried it and ever since then, I’ve stuck with it.”

Carter Haala’s journey to the mound came as a result of having a strong arm.

“I would say I’ve always had one of the more stronger arms growing up, so my coaches in the past would see that and they’d be like, ‘Hey, have you ever pitched?’ Or, ‘Would you like to try pitching?’ … So that’s basically how I started pitching is that they found I had a decent arm, so they kind of just threw me on the mound and it went from there.”

While they both pitch, there’s not a lot of secrets or tips the two exchange with one another as field dimensions and pitch deliveries differ quite a bit.

“It’s very different from one another, one’s overhand, one’s underhand,” Megan Haala said. “And I don’t know how baseball pitches work and how they grip everything because it’s way different, so I can’t help him with that. But I haven’t really had to help him with hitting, but I’m sure I could say something if he needs it.”

Carter Haala said when the two do share comments and advice relating to their sports, it’s mostly about hitting.

“Pitching for softball is a lot different, and I’m not really knowledgeable on that, so I’ve never really given her any advice for pitching,” he said. “She’s doing her own thing out there, I don’t think she really needs my advice either. But I’ve tried to give her some pointers here and there for hitting, too, because they kind of go hand and hand. Softball and baseball hitting, it’s the same thing basically.”

Those who have seen either of the twins on the field this year will probably notice a similar calm and composed approach in their play.

They haven’t been knocked around often this year when pitching. If they have had setbacks, they’ve often responded and gotten through them.

And that quiet approach has worked out well so far.

“We’re more on the quieter side and just doing whatever we need to do out there and not getting all excited about it and just go and play,” Carter Haala said. “I think we both play that way.”

With that relaxed side, Carter Haala said his twin sister is one of the more calmer softball players he’s seen. Her consistency also stands out to him.

“Just being able to play consistent,” he said. “Not making many errors, hitting the ball consistently, just being a consistent player.”

Megan Haala had many good things to say about her brother’s play.

“He always puts the ball in play when it needs to be,” Megan Haala said. “And with pitching, I’d say he’s one of the more accurate pitchers. And he also has the speed, so that helps, and he can hit his spots that he needs to, so it’s not all just straight down the middle and he can plan stuff around it.”

Carter Haala knows what it’s like to reach the state tournament after he helped his team get to the Class A State Baseball Tournament last season. The Greyhounds fell in the first round of the state tourney last year to No. 1 Hayfield by a score of 5-4 before beating South Ridge 8-4 in the consolation bracket.

The Greyhounds then dropped their final game of the tournament in the consolation finals to MACCRAY 8-7.

This year, Carter Haala is hoping to help his team repeat that trip to state but with a better end result.

“Try to repeat what we did last year, but play a little more solid coming to the state tournament when we get there,” he said. “[The first game] was super close, it was very unfortunate how it ended, too.”

Making it to state wouldn’t be new to Megan Haala either, as she played with Cathedral’s 2019 state tournament team as an eighth-grader, but she’s hoping she can experience that with her team again this year during her senior year.

“My goal is obviously to make it to state and have a good run at state,” Megan Haala said. “And I think we’re capable of it, we just need to bring our best every single game we play.”

With playoffs just beginning and several quality teams in Section 2A for baseball and softball, punching multiple tickets to state won’t be an easy task for Cathedral.

But the Haala twins are up for the challenge.

Both the Cathedral baseball and softball teams drew a first-round bye in their respective section tournaments this year as the No. 2 seeds. The Cathedral softball team hosts Martin County West on Thursday, while the baseball team hosts a team to be determined next Tuesday.

While this is the last hurrah at Cathedral for the twins, it’s not the end of the Haala family at the school. Madelyn Haala, the twins’ younger sister, is finishing her sophomore year with the Greyhounds softball team as a first baseman and pitcher.