Titan baseball team battles through tough stretch against top competition

The Tea Area High School baseball team has faced a demanding stretch of games over the past week, taking on strong competition in multiple outings.

On Tuesday, April 21, the Titans hosted Sioux Falls Lincoln in a doubleheader, falling 13-9 in the opener and 19-6 in the second game.

In game one, Sioux Falls Lincoln struck early, taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning behind a run-scoring single from Timat. The Patriots extended their lead in the second inning, capitalizing on walks and an error to build a 3-0 advantage.

Tea Area responded in the bottom of the second inning, stringing together singles from Blake Gabbert, Brayden Gniffke, and Miles Jelen. A wild pitch allowed Gabbert to score, cutting the deficit to 3-1.

Lincoln broke the game open in the fourth inning, scoring five runs on a combination of hits, walks, and sacrifice flies to take an 8-1 lead. The Titans answered in the bottom half of the inning with a strong rally. Nate Hall drove in a run with a single, and Zach Rieland delivered a key triple to bring home two more. Landyn Johnson added an RBI ground-out to pull Tea Area within 8-5.

The Titans continued to battle in the fifth inning, as Rieland came through again with a three-run double to trim the deficit to 10-8. However, Sioux Falls Lincoln added insurance runs in the sixth and seventh innings to secure the 13-9 victory.

Avery Hangman and Easton Foudray handled pitching duties, with Hangman recording five strikeouts and Foudray recording three. 

In the second game, Sioux Falls Lincoln once again jumped out to an early lead, scoring four runs in the first inning and adding four more in the second to take control.

Tea Area showed signs of life in the third inning when a wild pitch allowed Miles Jelen to score. The Titans added four runs in the fourth inning, highlighted by Jelen’s bases-clearing triple and an RBI double from Tyson Gilbert, cutting the deficit to 13-5.

Despite the offensive surge, Lincoln answered with a seven-run sixth inning to put the game out of reach. Tea Area added one more run in the bottom of the sixth but ultimately fell 19-6. Zach Pies, Miles Jelen, and Nate Hall were on the mound. Hall recorded five strikeouts, Jelen three, and Pies one. 

On Thursday, April 23, the Titans traveled to face Brandon Valley, dropping a 5-1 decision.

Tea Area had early opportunities, putting runners on base in the first and second innings, but couldn’t capitalize. Brandon Valley broke through in the third inning, scoring five runs on a mix of hits, walks, and defensive miscues.

The Titans’ lone run came in the fourth inning when Easton Foudray scored on a passed ball. Tea Area threatened further in the inning but left runners stranded. Landyn Johnson and Ethan Knettel handled pitching duties with Johnson striking out six and Knettel recording two strikeouts. 

On Saturday, April 25, Tea Area hosted Spearfish and fell 7-3.

Spearfish took a 2-0 lead in the first inning and added another run in the third. The Titans got on the board in the fourth when Zach Pies scored on a wild pitch to make it 3-1.

Spearfish responded with a four-run fifth inning, aided by multiple Tea Area errors, extending the lead to 7-1.

Tea Area mounted a late rally in the seventh inning. Nate Hall scored on a walk, and Landyn Johnson crossed the plate on a bases-loaded walk to cut the deficit to 7-3. However, the comeback attempt fell short as the Spartans held on for the win.

Ethan Knettel and Bryson Prussman were on the mound for the Titans with Knettel recording eight strikeouts. 

The Titans dropped two more on Sunday, April 26, losing to Rapid City Stevens (8-2) and Sioux Falls Christian (14-4).

Against Rapid City Stevens, the Raiders jumped out early, scoring in the opening inning behind a series of singles to take a 1-0 lead. They extended their advantage in the second, capitalizing on hit batters and timely hitting to go up 3-0.

Tea Area answered in the bottom of the third inning. Ethan Knettel got things started with a single and later scored on a base hit by Avery Hangman. Easton Foudray followed with an RBI double to bring the Titans within one at 3-2.

However, Rapid City Stevens broke the game open in the fourth inning, plating five runs on a combination of singles, walks and defensive miscues to take an 8-2 lead. The Titans were unable to recover, despite hits from Landyn Johnson, Blake Gabbert and Foudray throughout the game.

In the second game of the day, Tea Area took on Sioux Falls Christian, who built an early lead and never looked back. The Chargers scored three runs in the first inning, highlighted by a bases-clearing double.

Tea Area responded in the bottom half of the inning when Landyn Johnson doubled and later scored on an RBI single by Ethan Knettel to make it 3-1.

The Titans continued to battle in the third inning. Miles Jelen singled and scored on a base hit from Easton Foudray, and Tyson Gilbert added a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 6-3.

Sioux Falls Christian pulled away in the middle innings, scoring four runs in the fourth and adding to their lead in the fifth and sixth innings. Despite the setback, Tea Area added one more run in the fourth when Foudray drove in Avery Hangman with a single.

Tea Area will look to bounce back later this week. The Titans are scheduled to host Aberdeen on Friday, May 1, before traveling to Huron on Saturday, May 2. They will return to action again on Tuesday, May 5 at Sioux Falls Washington.