Firechiefs to Play in 92nd State B Tourney on Saturday

The Milbank Firechiefs face the Hartford-Humboldt Gamecocks on Saturday, August 10,  at 1 p.m. in their first game of South Dakota’s 2024 Class B Amateur Baseball Tournament.

The 31-game state tournament starts today at Cadwell Park in Mitchell. The 32 teams who made the cut will be shaved down to two, and those two will face off in the championship game on Sunday, August 18. Bracket pairings were announced on Sunday, August 4, by the commissioners of the South Dakota Amateur Baseball Association (SDABA).

2024 State B Amateur Baseball Tournament Schedule:
Saturday, August 10
G11: Elkton vs. Dell Rapids PBR at11 a.m.
G12: Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks vs. Milbank at 1 p.m.
G13: Mount Vernon vs. Salem at 5:30 p.m.
G14: Chamberlain vs. Winner-Colome at 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, August 11
G15: Crofton (Neb.) vs. Four Corners at 11 a.m.
G16: Corsica vs. Garretson at 1 p.m.

Championship Game
Sunday, August 11 at 5:30 p.m.

How did the Firechiefs earn their way into the tournament?
The region’s top-seeded Milbank Firechiefs burned the second-seeded Lake Norden Lakers 7-3 in the championship game of Region1 B on Thursday night, August 1, in Milbank. With the win, Milbank advanced to the state tournament.

The Region 1B championship game was originally scheduled for July 31, but  had been postponed when thunderstorms, accompanied by heavy rain, hit the Milbank area off-and-on during the day and continued past game time.

During the match up on Thursday, the Firechiefs had to work fast to fan the flames when Lake Norden’s Cameron Thue knocked out a single to send two runners home and the Lakers finished the top of the second with a 3-1 lead. Milbank roared back with five unearned runs in the bottom of the third– three of the runs were courtesy of a double by Kellen Hoeke. Milbank added two more runs and held the Lakers scoreless the rest of the game to hold on for the victory.

Dom Boerger earned the win on the mound with 19 strikeouts for the Firechiefs. He gave up three hits and allowed no runs during 7 2/3 innings of relief. Boerger and Merik Junker each put up two hits. J.D. Kirchner took the loss for Lake Norden. In six innings, Kirchner allowed two runs and struck out 11. Jackson Noem led the Lakers offense with a triple.

Keep up with The Valley Express for more results from the 2024 State B Tournament .

Submitted Photos