Dell Rapids qualified for the State VFW Class A 15/16 year-old tournament with a win in the region 3A championship game on Thursday, July 31, in Humboldt. Dell Rapids will participate in the state tournament in Volga August 8-10.
Dell Rapids 2, West Central 1
Dell Rapids edged host West Central 2-1 in the championship game to qualify for state.
West Central took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning. Justin Sebert walked, stole second and scored on an RBI single by Joseph Hanisch. A strong throw from centerfielder Seth Andersen came close to getting Sebert at the plate.
Ty Hoglund pitched three strong innings for Dell Rapids to start the game. He allowed one run on one hit and struck out six. Mason Peter came on in relief in the fourth inning and recorded three straight outs for Dell Rapids.
The Dell Rapids offense came alive in the top of the fourth. Casey Hansen singled up the middle and advanced to second on a walk by Hoglund. With one out Nate McKee singled to load the bases. Joel Brust drew a walk to force in the tying run. Dawson Kerzman put Dell Rapids ahead for good with a sharp single to centerfield to score Hoglund for a 2-1 lead. West Central ended the threat when Nick Hoffman’s line drive hit to centerfield was fired to second base for a force out.
Brett Mogen came on to close the final three innings for Dell Rapids. He retired all nine batters he faced. He struck out three. Second baseman Reese Warne made an over the shoulder catch with one out in the final inning to keep West Central from mounting a rally.
West Central was held to two hits. Dell Rapids came up with four hits. Hoglund tripled while McKee, Hansen and Kerzman all singled.
Dell Rapids 7, Colton/Crooks 3
Dell Rapids outlasted Crooks/Colton in the second round on Wednesday, July 30.
C/C struck first when Logan Larson singled and eventually scored on a wild pitch. They added a second run when Alex Gonzelez singled, stole second and scored on a double by Larson.
Dell Rapids answered with three runs in the bottom of the second. Kerzman singled and advanced to third on Eric Klein’s double. Nick Hoffman got Kerzman home on a ground out. A single by Seth Andersen and a walk by Hansen allowed both Klein and Hoffman to score to give Dell Rapids a 3-2 lead after two innings.
One run in the fifth and two more in the sixth helped Dell Rapids pull away with a 7-2 lead. Mogen scored in the fifth. Hoffman and Andersen both scored in the sixth. All three runs were created by walks.
Dell Rapids managed only four hits but collected 11 walks.
Winning pitcher Trey Randel pitched the first four innings for Dell Rapids. He gave up two runs, three hits, four walks and struck out two. Trevor Pulscher pitched the final three innings and was credited with a save. He allowed three hits, one unearned run and struck out five.
Klein had two hits for Dell Rapids. Andersen and Kerzman both singled.
Dell Rapids 3, West Central 2
It took eight innings for Dell Rapids to overtake West Central in the opening game of the tournament on Wednesday, July 30.
Mogen scored the winning run on a failed pickoff attempt at third base with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning for the win.
West Central scored first in the top of fourth inning. Justin Sebert was hit with a pitch and advanced to second and then third on a steal and sacrifice bunt. He scored on a suicide squeeze bunt executed by Tyler Renken. West Central extended its lead to 2-0 when Jason Steckley scored on a double by Sebert.
Dell Rapids tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the sixth. Brust walked and Mogen reached on an infield error. Both scored after Kerzman reached on an infield error and Randel hit a sacrifice fly.
Hoglund pitched the first four innings and recorded eight strikeouts while allowing one run on one hit. Mogen pitched the final four innings. He allowed one run on four hits and struck out four.