The Hastings Legion Baseball Team started their week with their second send off to state in as many years. The brief celebration took place at Legion Post 47 in Hastings on Wednesday where they did a trophy presentation to the post and a photo collage presentation to their number one fan, Great Grandma Shirley Matsch before the hopped on a coach bus to head to Maple Grove. Their week and season ended with a third loss in a row for pool play. The whirlwind week was emotional for players, coaches and families alike with this group of kids playing together since T-Ball.
Wednesday, the team, with their families, met at the legion to get things settled on their coach bus before surprising their number one fan with a picture collage that contained photos from all of their tournament wins since they began playing together, Matsch was overcome with emotion when the boys opened up the beautifully framed gift. A lot of hugs were shared before the boys took a picture with “GG”.
The next item on the docket was to present the Sub-State trophy to Post Commander Neil Hoadly before they boarded the bus to state tournament festivities which included a banquet for all 16 teams. It was clear that the finality was officially hitting the parents and players alike. The realization that something a decade plus in the making was coming to an end. Head Coach Ryan Seleski repeatedly talks about this group being a family, and this family knew the boys had only a few games left in this chapter of their life.
On Thursday, the Raiders were scheduled to play two games in Delano and one on Friday. Mother Nature did not like that combination and a wet weather system moved in Wednesday night/Thursday morning pushing the first game from noon to 2:00. A few quick sprinkles and some longer games forced the Raiders to play twice Friday instead of Thursday.
Hastings was slated to play Mankato, Sartell and Farmington in their pool with the top two teams moving forward. Against Mankato, Hastings looked to be ready to thump them when Evan Nelson hit a three-run bomb to center field in the first inning. Unfortunately for Hastings, that was all the offense they could muster against Mankato, and they fell 13-3 in five innings.
Mark DeNoyer started on the bump for Hastings, facing 18 batters with no strikeouts and one walk while allowing six runs in three innings pitched. Colton McKnight faced 12 batters in relief of DeNoyer striking out two and walking three while allowing six runs in one inning. Cole Karnick finished the game on the mound facing four batters in one-third of an inning, walking three allowing one earned run.
Gavin Odman had the start on the mound for Hastings against Sartell and he did a solid job keeping them baffled for the first four innings of the game. Once again, Hastings scored first going up 1-0 in the top of the first inning. Sartell scored in the bottom of the third to tie things up and then in the bottom of the fifth, they figured something out against Odman where they scored six. Hastings fought back with a run in the sixth, but it was too late. Sartell won 7-2.
Odman struck out two in five innings of work and Nelson relieved him for the final inning where he struck out two as well.
The final game of pool play was another five-inning thumping where the boys fell 13-2. Carter Lundstrom pitched three and two thirds’ innings giving up 11 runs with five of them earned while walking only two and striking out three. Karnick finished the game going one and a third innings giving up two runs, striking out two while walking one.
Following the final pool game and finishing the tournament 0-3 there were a lot of social media posts from parents talking about the pride they had for all of the kids making it to state two years in a row and for all of their other accomplishments from T-ball to their senior summer. This is truly a special class of kids and families that have done so much together, it is natural for them to be sad it is over. They accomplished many things together over the past decade plus and they will have a plethora of memories to carry with them as they head into adulthood.
Congratulations on another state run and we at the Journal wish you all the best in the next chapter.