ABERDEEN — The Brookings Post 74 Bandits American Legion baseball team dropped both ends of a doubleheader against the Aberdeen Smittys on Tuesday evening.

The losses dropped the Bandits to 8-12 on the season. Brookings will return to action in a doubleheader against Yankton at Bob Shelden Field on Thursday at 5 p.m.

Game 1: Aberdeen 10, Brookings 8

The Bandits fought back from a five-run deficit early but came up short as they dropped the first game of the doubleheader by a score of 10-8.

Owen Schneider ran into trouble in the bottom of the first inning after hitting Drew Salfrank with a pitch and walking Cooper Esienbeisz to start the game. Salfrank stole second and third base during Esienbeisz’s at-bat and Zane Backous drove him in with a fly to the outfield but the Bandits turned a double play when Esienbeisz failed to tag up.

But Schneider ran into more trouble after the double play, hitting Phillip Zens with a pitch and walking Brendan Livermont. Joran Foss cashed in with an RBI single and Grant Beyer hit a three-run home run to give Aberdeen a 5-0 lead.

Brookings responded in the top of the second when Jase Bauer was hit with a pitch. Austin Clark and Sam Johnson reached on errors to load the bases before Nolan Miles drove in two runs with a double to cut the lead down to 5-2.

Tate Helmbolt followed up with an RBI single in the next at-bat and Schneider drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to make it a 5-4 game.

Brookings tied the game when Clark reached on a walk and stole home in the top of the third inning but Aberdeen quickly took the lead back on an RBI single by Talan Dutenhoeffer in the bottom of the third.

A pair of two-run homers by Backous and Brendan Livermont put Aberdeen up 9-5 in the bottom of the fourth inning and Zens made it a 10-5 game with an RBI double in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Brookings scored three times in the top of the seventh on RBI singles by Clark and Miles and a bases-loaded walk by Schneider but it wasn’t enough to complete the comeback.

Schneider went 2-for-2 at the plate with two walks, a stolen base and two RBI. Schneider also allowed nine runs (eight earned) on seven hits and four walks with three strikeouts over 3.2 innings.

Miles went 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and three RBI. Helmbolt went 1-for-5 with a stolen base and an RBI. Clark went 1-for-3 with a walk, two stolen bases, three runs scored and an RBI. Johnson walked twice and scored a run. Addison Ronning walked twice.

David Brink pitched the final 2.1 innings, allowing an earned run on four hits. Brink also walked twice and scored a run at the plate.

Game 2: Aberdeen 6, Brookings 4

The Bandits scored three times in the seventh but it wasn’t enough as Aberdeen won the second game of the doubleheader by a score of 6-4.

Brookings scored a run in the top of the first inning when Helmbolt led off the game with a single and stole second base to get into scoring position for Schneider to knock him in with a single.

The Bandits’ lead didn’t last long, however, as Zens led off the bottom of the second inning with a walk and scored on a Livermont double. Aberdeen took the lead on J Klootwyk’s single in the bottom of the second inning and broke the game open with an RBI single by Zens, a run scoring on a passed ball and a sacrifice fly by Livermont in the bottom of the third inning.

Down 6-1, Brookings mounted a rally in the top of the seventh. Helmbolt reached on an error, Miles singled and Schneider drew a walk to load the bases with one out in the inning and Ronning and Brink drew back-to-back walks to cut the lead down to 6-3.

Jack Merritt popped out for the second out of the inning before Zach Struck drew another bases-loaded walk but Bauer struck out to end the game.

Miles went 3-for-4 with a stolen base and a run scored. Schneider went 2-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and an RBI. Helmbolt went 1-for-3 with a walk, two stolen bases and two runs scored. Bauer went 1-for-5. Brink walked twice with an RBI. Ronning and Struck each walked once with an RBI. Winston Plummer drew a walk.

Struck started for the Bandits, allowing six runs (four earned) on five hits and three walks and a strikeout over three innings. Helmbolt finished the game allowing one hit and two walks with a strikeout over the final three innings.