REDFIELD – Dell Rapids Post 65 came from behind to defeat Elk Point/Jefferson Post 134 in the South Dakota American Legion Class B State Championships, earning the title with a 5-2 victory Tuesday in Redfield.

Post 134 jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning as leadoff hitter Hunter Geary walked and Ty Trometer reached on an error. Keaton Gale drove in Geary with a single and after a fielders choice moved Trometer to third, Ben Swatek drove him in with a sacrifice fly to center field.

Dell Rapids got on the board in the third. Drake Eastman reached on an error and Dylan Kindt followed with a single, moving Eastman to third.

Brayden Pankonen bunted, and both Eastman and Kindt scored on the errant throw by EPJ’s Ben Swatek. Pankonen stole second, moved to third on a ground out, and then Boechler lifted a sacrifice fly to left to score Pankonen and give Dell Rapids the 3-2 lead.

Dell Rapids put another run on the board in the fourth, as Mason Stubbe singled, stole second and stole third, and then he scored on a single by Drake Eastman, pushing Post 65’s lead to 4-2.

Stubbe sparked another run-scoring inning in the bottom of the sixth when he singled to leadoff the inning, stole second and third, and then scored on a sacrifice bunt by Will Jaton, making the score 5-2.

Dylan Kindt toed the mound for Dell Rapids for 6 1/3 innings, allowing two unearned runs on four hits and four walks, striking out seven. Pankonen finished out the game with 2/3 scoreless inning.

Stubbe was the only Post 65 player with multiple hits, slapping two singles and stealing four bases.

Jack Henry tagged a double for Dell Rapids and Pankonen, Boechler, Eastman, and Kindt each stole a base.

Kayden Moore pitched the distance for EPJ, allowing five runs on eight hits over six innings, striking out two.

Ben Swatek laced a pair of singles to lead the Post 134 offense.

Dell Rapids also was awarded the team sportsmanship award for the tournament.

Semifinals
The Elk Point/Jefferson Post 134 team recovered from an opening round loss to Redfield to reach the championship game Tuesday against Dell Rapids.

In quarterfinal action Monday, Elk Point/Jefferson and the Tabor Bluebirds won games to set up a semifinal matchup on Tuesday. Post 134 used a five-run outburst in the bottom of the third to take a 6-2 lead over Tabor, then tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Tabor scored a run in the fifth and a pair of runs in the sixth, but fell short in the elimination game by the score of 8-5.

Hunter Geary opened the game on the mound for EP/J. He lasted 2 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on three hits and five walks, striking out two.

Geary was relieved by Ty Trometer, who tossed  4 2/3 innings of relief, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks, striking out a pair of Tabor hitters.

Tayson Swatek led the EPJ attack with three singles.

Geary, Noah McDermott, and Jacob Gale each stole a base for Post 134.

Landon Smith started on the hill for Tabor, going 2 2/3 innings, allowing six runs on five walks and four hits, striking out three. Brady Bierema closed out the game for the Bluebirds, allowing two runs on two hits and a walk, striking out one.

Landon Bares paced the Bluebird offense with a double and a single. Riley Rothschadl had a stolen base.

Tabor 5, Redfield 3
On Monday, Tabor secured a spot in the semifinals with a 5-3 win over Redfield Post 92. The Bluebirds scored in just one inning, plating five runs in the bottom of the fifth to take the lead and hold on for a 5-3 win.

Rothschadl allowed three runs over 6 2/3 innings on three hits and three walks, striking out eight. Landon Smith got the final out after allowing a hit.

Logan Winckler had a pair of singles to lead the Tabor offense. Easton Mudder drove in Tabor’s final two runs with a single in the fifth.

Keaton Rohlfs went the distance for Redfield, tossing six innings, allowing five runs on three hits and two walks, striking out one. He also hit three batters.

Rohlfs had a double and drove in two runs to lead the Post 92 offense.

Peyton Osborn was on base four times with a double, a hit by pitch, and two walks while also stealing a base. Nolan Gall also swiped a base.

Elk Point/Jefferson 5, Dell Rapids 4
Elk Point/Jefferson handed Dell Rapids Post 65 its first loss of the tournament Monday to advance.

Dell Rapids struck first in the game, scoring a single run in the second inning. After the teams traded single runs in the fourth inning, Dell Rapids plated a pair of runs in the top of the fifth. EPJ responded with three in the bottom of the inning to tie the score.

That’s how things would stand into extra innings. In the bottom of the ninth, Post 134 broke through, drawing a pair of walks to open the inning, then using an error to load the bases. After a fly out gave Dell Rapids two outs in the inning, a wild pitch by Will Jaton allowed Ty Trometer to score the winning run, giving EPJ a 5-4 win.

Ben Swatek opened the game pitching for EPJ, tossing seven innings, allowing four runs on eight hits and four walks, striking out three. Geary tossed the final two innings of scoreless relief, allowing a single walk and one hit.

Trometer was the lone Post 134 hitter to record multiple hits, with a pair of singles. Tayson Swatek had a double, while Geary and Keeton Gale each stole a base.

Treyse Eastman covered the first five innings on the mound for Dell Rapids, allowing four runs on four hits and five walks while striking out five. Jaton allowed one unearned run on one hit and four walks over 3 2/3 innings of relief, striking out two.

Mason Stubbe and Drake Eastman each had a pair of singles. Stubbe also had a stolen base.

Jack Henry had a double and a steal. CJ Smith had a double and Aiden Boechler legged out a triple.