Tea takes 19U Region Championship runner-up honors
The Tea Legion Post 266 baseball team have punched their ticket to State, capturing runner-up honors at the 19U Class B Region Tournament.
On Friday, July 24 Tea began Region play, facing off against Humboldt/Hartford.
Both teams were strong on the hill, but Tea defeated Humboldt/Hartford Legion 2-1.
Cameron Jensen was credited with the victory for Tea on the mound. He allowed three hits and one run over four innings, striking out six. Dawson Portner and Trevor Welch entered the game out of the bullpen and helped to close out the game in relief. Welch recorded the last four outs to earn the save for Tea.
Carter McGregor went 2-for-3 at the plate to lead the TinCaps in hits. Tea was sure-handed and didn’t commit a single error. Troy Ljunggren made the most plays with eight.
Following the win over Humboldt/Hartford, Tea took on Colton and once again recorded the win, getting the 5-1 victory.
Tea got things moving in the first inning, when McGregor doubled on the first pitch of the at bat, scoring one run.
The TinCaps scored four runs in the second inning. The offensive onslaught by Tea was led by Ljunggren and McGregor, all knocking in runs in the inning.
Portner was credited with the victory for Tea on the mound.
He lasted two and a third innings, allowing one hit and zero runs while striking out four and walking one. Gabe Glanzer and Welch entered the game out of the bullpen and helped to close out the game in relief.
McGregor led Tea with two hits in four at bats. Tea was sure-handed and didn’t commit a single error. Riley Schnider made the most plays with 12.
After their win over Colton the TinCaps found themselves in a match-up against Lennox on July 27.
Tea had a tough time generating runs, dropping the game 6-0. One bright spot for Tea was a single by McGregor in the second inning.
Portner took the loss for Tea. He surrendered three runs on two hits over three innings, striking out two.
Glanzer, Welch, Jensen, and McGregor all had one hit to lead Tea.
Following the loss to Lennox, Tea faced off once again against Humboldt/Hartford and once again the TinCaps got the win, getting a 4-0 victory on July 28. In the second inning, Tea got their offense started when Ian Bennett singled on a 2-1 count, scoring one run.
The TinCaps put up three runs in the fourth inning. Tea batters contributing to the big inning included Montana Redday and Portner, all sending runners across the plate with RBIs in the inning.
Jensen was the winning pitcher for Tea. He went six and two-thirds innings, allowing zero runs on two hits and striking out 12. Welch threw one-third of an inning in relief out of the bullpen. Ljunggren, Portner, McGregor, Bennett, and Welch each managed one hit to lead the TinCaps.
With the win, Tea was forced to face off against Lennox once again on July 29.
Tea lost the lead late in a 7-6 defeat to Lennox, giving Lennox the Region Championship title and leaving the TinCaps runners-up.
The game was tied at six with Lennox batting in the bottom of the sixth when Brenden Hone singled on a 1-1 count, scoring one run.
Tea collected five hits and Lennox had ten in the high-scoring affair. Tea notched five runs in the fifth inning. Batters contributing to the big inning included McGregor and Welch, who all drove in runs.
Lennox scored four runs in the fifth inning. Otte, Hone, Mason Miller, and Braeden Wulf powered the big inning with RBIs.
Welch took the loss for Tea on the mound. He went two-thirds of an inning, allowing zero runs on one hit and walking zero. Glanzer started the game for Tea. He went four and a third innings, allowing six runs on nine hits and striking out one. Tea hit one home run on the day; McGregor had a long ball in the fifth inning.
The VFW 19U Class B State Tournament will be held Aug. 7-9 in Bryant, SD.
Tea is scheduled to face off against Vermillion on Friday, Aug. 7 at 10 a.m. in the opening game. The winner advances to play on Saturday at 3 p.m. taking on the winner of the Castlewood-Clear Lake vs. Alexandria match-up. The State Championship game is set for Sunday, Aug. 9 at 6 p.m.
Team members representing the TinCaps at the State Tournament include Eli Frank, Cameron Jenson, Trevor Welch, Riley Schnider, Marcus Bolin, Gabe Glanzer, Ian Bennett, Hunter Johnson, Dawson Portner, Troy Ljunggren, Montana Redday, Trey Pearson, Gavin Bialas, Alex Hofer, and Carter McGregor. The team is coached by Jeff Portner.