BROOKINGS – In a critical matchup between the fourth-ranked Harrisburg Tigers and fifth-ranked Brookings Bobcats, the Bobcats put themselves in excellent position to be the host for one of four regional tournaments of the Class A of the South Dakota High School Baseball Association’s 2022 postseason, which takes place this Saturday.
Brookings got a pair of pitching gems from Nathan Lease in game one and Josh Devine in game two and would sweep Harrisburg by scores of 7-3 and 5-0 on Monday night during senior night at Bob Shelden Field.
The Bobcats’ regular season schedule is complete; Brookings finished with a 17-7 record, winning six of their last seven games.
The top four teams in Class A will host single-elimination regional tournaments this Saturday, May 21. The winner of each regional goes on to the state tournament on Saturday, May 28 at Sioux Falls Stadium.
Game one
• Brookings 7, Harrisburg 3
Starting pitcher Nathan Lease kept a high-powered Harrisburg offense silent for six innings, then weathered a late storm in the seventh as the Bobcats picked up the win in the opening game of the doubleheader.
Lease went the distance, allowing three runs (two earned) while scattering six hits, walking two, and striking out seven.
The Bobcats got on the board right out of the chute with a run in the first inning with the help of one of the Tigers’ five errors in the game.
Leadoff hitter Lincoln Hardin reached after an error at third base on a ground ball. Two batters later Breck Hirrschoff drew a walk and both runners would move into scoring position following a ground out.
Charlie Holm’s base hit to center field scored Hardin easily but Hirrschoff was tagged out at home on a strong throw from center, limiting the damage to a single run as Brookings had a 1-0 lead after the first.
Brookings added two more runs in the third inning. Hardin singled, his first of two hits on the game, then Austin Clark also singled and Hirrschoff walked to load the bases.
Ashton Witte would ground into a fielder’s choice that scored Hardin from third, but the Tigers’ defense threw away the attempted double-play toss which allowed Clark to touch the pentagon as well, extending the Bobcat lead to 3-0.
The lead grew to 5-0 an inning later. Justin Cofell singled, then with two outs Hardin smacked his second hit of the game to score Cofell. Another Tiger error moved Hardin up to third and he would score four pitches later on a passed ball.
Brookings added singles runs in the fifth inning when Payton Theodosopoulos scored on Jake Ammann’s single, and in the sixth inning when Hardin trotted home on a balk that bumped the margin to 7-0.
After cruising through six innings Lease gave up three straight hits to open the seventh and cut the lead to 7-1 but would settle down to get two outs. Another hit and error cut the lead to 7-3 but Harrisburg would inch no closer.
Hardin finished with two hits and four runs scored.
Cofell also had two hits including the Bobcats’ only extra-base hit, a double.
Clark, Holm, and Ammann accounted for the other three Brookings hits.
Game two
• Brookings 5, Harrisburg 0
Josh Devine would again hold the Harrisburg bats in check in the back end of the doubleheader.
The senior righty allowed just three hits, walked two, and hit two batter, but struck out seven along the way as Devine and the Bobcats pitched a shutout, 5-0.
The Bobcats opened the scoring again in the home half of the first inning with a gutsy call from the Brookings coaching staff. With Hirrschoff standing on third and the Tigers’ starting pitcher’s slow delivery to the plate, HIrrschoff got the green light to steal home and slid in just ahead of the tag to give the home-standing Bobcats a 1-0 lead.
The lead would double to 2-0 an inning later after Cofell reached on an infield single, beat the throw on a pickoff attempt at second for a stolen base, then came around to score on a Theodosopoulos single.
In the fifth Theodosopoulos, Hardin, and Hirrschoff all singled to open the inning and all would eventually come home to score as the lead ballooned to 5-0.
That was more than enough of a cushion for Devine who got out of jams with two runners on in both the sixth and seventh innings to finish off the win and shutout.
Hardin again had two hits while Theodosopoulos also had two.
Hirrschoff and Cofell added hits five and six for the Bobcats in the second game.
