Austin pitcher Nels Nelson picked a good time to pitch one of his better games of the season, but the Greyhounds still missed out on the final four of the Spamtown Challenge as they beat Appleton, Wis. 5-0 but lost to Cold Spring 3-2 at Marcusen Park Saturday.

Nelson allowed just four hits in the win over Appleton as the Hounds (9-10 overall) jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second after Tyler Leopold doubled in a run.

From that point on Nelson was in control.

“ We needed it,” Nelson said of his shutout. “We’ve got a lot season left, but having today was a confidence booster. We just played a solid game all-around and it was good team effort.”

The Hounds tied up their contest with the Springers with two runs in the top of the fourth, but Cold Spring took the lead for good with a run in the bottom of the fourth.

Minnetonka won the 16-team Spamtown Challenge when it beat the St. Paul Capitols 6-2 Sunday.

“It was a great tournament and a lot of the teams said they want to come back next year,” Hounds manager John Frein said.

Hounds 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 — 2 3 3

Cold Spring 0 0 2 1 0 0 X — 3 6 2

Hounds pitching: Joe Huffman (L), 6 IP, 6 H, 2 BB, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 K

Hounds hitting: Steve Serratore, 1-for-3; Matt Cano, 1-for-2, BB; Matt Raso, 0-for-2, BB; Tyler Leopold, 1-for-3, R; Logan Spitzack, 0-for-2, BB, SB; Bryan Toov, 0-for-1, RBI; Jay Ettinger, R

Appleton 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 4 2

Hounds 1 3 0 0 0 1 X — 5 6 0

Hounds pitching: Nels Nelson (W), 7 IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 0 R, 3 K

Hounds hitting: Andy Swank, 2-for-4, double, RBI, 2 R, SB; Leopold, 1-for-2, double, RBI, SB, 2 BBs; Nate Jounson, 1-for-3; Cano, 1-for-3; Raso, 0-for-2; Spitzack, 1-for-2, 2 R, BB; Toov, 0-for-1, 2 R, SB, 2 BBs; Joe Kroc, 0-for-2, RBI, BB; John Frein, 0-for-3; Gabe Kasak, 0-for-1