STICKS ADVANCE TO STATE; TO PLAY FRIDAY AT 11 AM

Freeman/Marion survives three eliminiation games, heads to Garretson with 23-3 record

“We’re built for this.”

That comment from Mike Kerrigan, a coach with the Freeman/Marion Sticks, came after the team’s championship in last week’s VFW 14-and-Under Region 7B Tournament and reflects the overall talent — specifically the pitching — that sets this team apart.

“We probably have three of the best 14u players in the state all on one team; it’s hard to compete with that,” said Kerrigan, who coaches the Sticks alongside Dustin Tschetter, who co-founded the program alongside Brad Miller in 2017. “And when you have the depth in the (pitching) rotation that we have, it makes a difference in tournaments like this.”

Freeman/Marion used all of that to its advantage in region play last week.

After beating Irene/Viborg 15-0 in the first round Monday, July 15 and losing 4-3 to host team Tyndall in the semifinals the following evening, the Sticks faced three elimination games and won them all to punch their ticket to this weekend’s VFW 14B State Tournament in Garretson, where they will face Ethan/Emery in the opening round at 11 a.m. Friday.

“I was confident we were going to go out there and hit the ball,” Kerrigan said. “The only reason we were in elimination games (in the first place) was because Tyndall made every single play, and we hit every ball right at their guys.”

And his message to the team going into state this weekend?

“Just keep doing what you’re doing,” he said, “and trust the guy behind you.”

Region 7 breakdown

Freeman/Marion may have gone into last week’s postseason with a sparkling 19-2 record, but getting through to state was no cakewalk. Region 7 — one of seven regions established by South Dakota VFW Baseball — was among the toughest in the state, with Tyndall coming in with a 14-3 record and Scotland/Menno at 14-3-2.

But the Sticks got a favorable draw and easily disposed of winless Irene/Viborg in the opening round without having to use any of its leading pitchers. Instead, it was Hunter Nankivel, who will be a sophomore in Marion, who drew the start and pitched two innings of clean baseball, and Trey Maske, who will be an eighth grader at Freeman Public, who finished off the Cardinals in the third inning. Together they allowed just one hit.

Freeman/Marion’s offense, meanwhile, produced nine runs in the first inning and six in the second to put the game away by the mercy rule in the third. Easton Tschetter and Rylen Tommeraus both went 3-for-3, with Tommeraus batting in three runs and Tschetter scoring three. Logun Pankratz went 2-for-2 with a pair of RBI, Tayden Kerrigan knocked in a couple of runs and Oliver Waltner had an RBI double to lead the team.

The Sticks’ win over the Cardinals set up a semifinal matchup on Tuesday with Tyndall — which had disposed of Scotland/Menno 9-4 in Monday’s opening round — and the team’s ace, Madden Merkwan.

And it was a game.

Merkwan struck out nine in his effort on the hill but allowed three earned runs on seven hits, including a 3-for-3 game at the plate from Waltner and a 2-for-3 showing from Nankivel.

Kerrigan, one of the Sticks’ three aces who will be a freshman at Freeman Public, struck out 10 in his outing, giving up eight hits and just two earned runs. But Tyndall also scored two unearned runs — the Sticks committed three errors as a team — and staved off a Freeman/Marion rally late to hold on to a 4-3 win.

That put Freeman/Marion in a must-win game against Scotland/Menno later on Tuesday and the Sticks came through, building a 5-1 lead in the fifth and hanging on for a 5-3 victory. Nankivel once again drew the start for the Sticks and once again was stellar, giving up five hits and three earned runs through 6 2/3 innings, striking out six and walking three in the win.

Pankratz and Kerrigan both doubled and Tommeraus and Waltner also collected hits for the Sticks, who with the win advanced to Wednesday’s final round and a rematch with Tyndall.

Championship play

Because Tyndall had defeated the Sticks in the semifinal and went into the championship round 2-0, it needed just one more victory to advance to state. But the team’s top two pitchers had both reached their maximum pitch count for the tournament while Freeman/Marion had plenty of pitching left, including 95 available from both Waltner and Tschetter.

And it was Waltner who drew the start in the Sticks’ first must-win game of Wednesday, and he allowed four hits and one earned run over two innings, with Tommeraus coming in and pitching two more innings of hitless baseball.

And Freeman/Marion’s offense came alive. Waltner, who will be a sophomore at Freeman Public, doubled and hit a home run in a 4-RBI showing and Tommeraus, Kerrigan, Maske and Peter Deckert each batted in a pair of runs in what ended up being a 13-2 win in four innings.

That set up a winner-take-all championship game against Tyndall, and the Sticks picked up right where they left off and came away with an 11-1 victory and a ticket to state. Waltner drew the start once again and gave up three hits and one earned run, striking out six and walking three in 4 1/3 innings pitched, with Tommeraus picking up the final two outs in what was another four-inning, mercy-rule game.

Nankivel led the offense, going 2-for-3 with two doubles and three RBI and Tommeraus finished 2-3 with two RBI. Waltner also had a double and Tschetter, Deckert and Breton Ross all batted in a run.

When it was all said and done, the Sticks overpowered Tyndall 24-3 in their final two games and didn’t even use Tschetter on the mound.

That reflects just how dominant Freeman/Marion has been on the field this season. In 26 games played, the Sticks have outscored their opponents 273-56, with their three losses coming by a total of three runs.

That’s what’s carrying Freeman/Marion into the state tournament, where they will face an Ethan/Emery team that comes in 11-8 and which they have defeated twice during the regular season by scores of 12-0 and 7-1. The winner of that game will play the winner of the Baltic/Britton game Saturday at approximately 4:30 p.m., with the winner of that game advancing to the championship.

Baltic goes into the tournament 9-7 while Britton is 16-9.

On the other side of the bracket, Winner (14-8) will face Parkston (13-4-1) and Clark Area (20-3) will play host team Garreton (7-11).

Past success

• The 14u Sticks finished third at state last year;
• The 12u Sticks were state champions in 2022;
• The 14u Sticks were state champions in 2021;
• The 12u Sticks were third at state in 2021;
• The 10u Sticks were state champions in 2020;
• The 10u and 12u Sticks were both state runners up in 2019.
• The 10u Sticks were state champions in 2018.