Photo courtesy of Jeff Holm

For the first time in nearly 50 years, the Dell Rapids Legion baseball team can call themselves legion champions!  Dell Rapids captured the 2018 State B title in extra innings by defeating McCook/Minor 10-7 on Tuesday, July 31st in Redfield.  The last time Dell Rapids won the state legion title was when they won back-to-back titles in 1968 and 1969.

Both teams were held scoreless for the first three and half innings.  Dell Rapids finally broke through in the bottom of the fourth inning.  Ty Wood drew a bases-loaded two-out walk to score Elijah Story.  Keegan Miller than scored on a wild pitch for an early 2-0 lead.

McCook/Minor tied the game in the top of the fifth inning on a two-run single by Kendall Gassman.  Trent Kingsbury added an RBI single later in the inning to give McCook/Miner a 3-2 lead.  McCook/Minor added two more runs in the top of the sixth inning on errors to push their lead to 5-2.

Dell Rapids pulled within a run in the bottom of the fifth after Miller and Wood scored on an error.  McCook/Minor led 5-4 after six innings of play.  They would add two more runs on a two-run single by Cole Gassman to make the score 7-4 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning.

Matt Gillogly lined a double to right field to score Eddie Price to cut the lead to 7-5.  Story, the very next batter, took the first pitch he saw and drove it over the left field wall for the game-trying two-run home run.

McCook/Minor would load the bases in the top of the eighth inning with one out after a walk, hit by pitch, and single.  Story was able to work out of the jam on the mound by getting the next two batters on a pop out to second and a line out to shortstop.

With one out in the bottom of the eighth inning, JD Holm singled to center.  Price reached by an error.  Gillogly stepped to the plate with Holm and Price on base and one out.  On a 3-2 pitch, Gillogly drove a no-doubter over the right field fence for the game-winning three-run home run to give Dell Rapids the title.

Gillogly finished the game with two hits and four RBIs.  Price and Miller also had two hits in the game.  Story, Holm, and Josh Roemen all had one hit.  Story had two RBIs, and Wood also had an RBI.  Roemen started the game on the mound pitching six innings giving up five runs, two earned, on eight hits while walking three and striking out six batters.  Story pitched the final two innings giving up two earned runs on three hits with two walks and a strikeout.

The team was met by a fire truck and was led back into Dell Rapids down to Rickeman Field where a celebration was had.  Dell Rapids finished the season with a 13-6 record.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Holm

Another five-run inning was all the Dell Rapids Legion baseball team needed to notch their second victory at the 2018 State B Legion Tournament in Redfield.  Dell Rapids would add a seven-run inning for good measure on their way to a 12-1 victory over Tabor on Saturday, July 28th.

With the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the third inning, Matt Gillogly singled to right field scoring Ty Wood for the first run of the game.  Two batters later Elijah Story hit a grand slam home run to left field to give Dell Rapids a 5-0 lead.

Tabor scored their lone run in the bottom of the fourth inning.  Joey Slama hit an RBI double that scored Bryce Scieszinski.

Wood hit a sacrifice fly for the second out of the fifth inning, but the flyout scored Keegan Miller to make the score 6-1.  Dell Rapids then scored six more times before the third out.  Josh Roemen hit an RBI single, Jake Rechtenbaugh and Roemen scored on an error, and Gillogly hit a three-run home run to make the score 12-1.  Tabor did not score in the bottom of the fifth inning, and the game ended on the 10-run rule.

Eddie Price pitched a complete game allowing one earned run on two hits while walking three batters and striking out eight.  Holm and Gillogly both had two hits in the game.  Roemen, Price, Story, Rechtenbaugh, and Wood also had hits.  Story and Gillogly both had four RBIs each in the game.

Dell Rapids will play Spearfish on Sunday, July 29th at 7:00 p.m.