DEVILS LAKE — Will Heilman had a home run called off in Devils Lake’s season opener on April 14.
He hit one over the wall, but it was negated due to a balk call.
“It was frustrating,” Heilman said. “But at the same time, it was a confidence booster that I can do that any at-bat, at any given time.”
Exactly 16 days later, Heilman did it again.
No balk this time.
“Once I got about halfway [down the line], I was like, ‘Oh, that might be gone,’” Heilman said.
For the first time in a high school game, Heilman hit a home run. He said his most recent home run was probably when he was 13 years old.
He crushed it off a left-handed pitcher.
“Just looking to drive it right back up the middle, and I don’t know. I hit a homer,” Heilman said with some surprise in his voice.
The ball sailed over the left-field fence.
“He pretty much hit it in the same spot [as the one that was called off],” Devils Lake head coach Brent Luehring said. “It was nice for him to get ahold of one. He’s put a lot of work in, and he’s done a lot of that in practice.”
Heilman’s bomb was a three-run shot in the first inning of the second game of Thursday’s doubleheader. The blast highlighted a solid day from the Devils Lake bats as they swept Grand Forks Central (4-11, 1-9) in an Eastern Dakota Conference matchup at DLYA Field.
“We were all hitting today,” Heilman said. “We swept South last week, and we know that we can beat anyone when we’re on our game.”
The Firebirds won 8-2 and 7-3. They improved to 7-5 in EDC play, bouncing back from a pair of losses to Fargo Davies on Tuesday.
“It was good to get back rolling,” Heilman said.
Even with Ben Brodina out sick, Devils Lake received contributions up and down the lineup — with players like Jaxon Strong, Tayven Wiberg, Alex Hammond and Henley Driessen getting hits.
“We feel pretty good about where we’re at with the number of guys we can play,” Luehring said. “Hopefully we’re choosing the right guy on the right day. We think we can play pretty much everybody. It’s just kind of picking our matchups and trying to go with who’s hot. So yeah, it’s nice to see those kids contribute. And a lot of those kids didn’t have varsity experience until this year.”
Game 1: Devils Lake 8, Grand Forks Central 2
The Firebirds put this one away with a six-run third inning.
Every starter recorded at least one hit. Mason Palmer and Wiberg each had three, while Strong and Hammond each recorded two.
The Palmer brothers handled business on the mound. Mason pitched the first three innings and Max pitched the last four.
Back-to-back extra-base hits from Mason Palmer and Heilman put Devils Lake on the board in the first inning. Strong, hitting eighth and DH’ing, came up big in the second inning. He hit a two-out RBI single to make it 2-0.
The Firebirds left the bases loaded in the second. But they poured it on in the third. They recorded five straight singles, including four consecutive infield hits. Hammond, Strong and Wiberg had RBI knocks.
With two outs, Taydon Triepke brought in two more runs with a single and a two-base error. Mason Palmer added a two-out RBI single, and the Firebirds extended their lead to 8-0.
Palmer struck out five in three innings, allowing only one hit. He utilized his curveball often and generally befuddled the Central hitters.
With the big lead, Luehring took Palmer out to rest his arm for the next game — pushing Heilman’s next start to Friday. Palmer threw just 34 pitches (25 strikes) in the first game.
“It just kind of depended on when we got that lead,” Luehring said.
Max Palmer struck out seven over four innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits and three walks. He threw 83 pitches (50 strikes) in relief.
The Firebirds left multiple runners on in each of the last three innings, but it didn’t matter as they cruised to a Game 1 victory.
Game 2: Devils Lake 7, Grand Forks Central 3
Much to Central’s likely dismay, the starting pitcher for the next game was once again Mason Palmer. With the abbreviated outing in Game 1, he had more pitches in the tank.
Palmer dominated as the offense got off to another quick start, taking a 5-0 lead in the second.
Heilman’s three-run bomb got Devils Lake started in the first. Driessen and Wiberg — the eight- and nine-hitters — both got on base to start the bottom of the second. Max Palmer and Triepke were able to drive them in.
“[The nine-hole]’s a great spot for [Wiberg],” Luehring said. “He’s gonna see a lot of fastballs. And he offers some speed down there, and can turn over our lineup. He’s been competing. He’s been putting really good swings on the bat.”
After limiting Central to one hit in the first three innings, the Knights finally scored against Mason Palmer in the fourth. He issued back-to-back walks, then allowed a run-scoring single to Noah Holter.
Palmer still struck out three in the inning. He struck out six over four innings, allowing one run on two hits. He threw 71 pitches (41 strikes).
Central rallied for two against Triepke in the fifth. The frame ended on an assist from Heilman in left, on a runner trying to stretch a single into a double.
Devils Lake got those two runs right back. Cayden McCarthy, who reached base three times in the game, hit an RBI double, and Hammond added an RBI single. These were crucial runs, keeping the lead comfortable at 7-3.
Easton Kraft added two hits in the middle of the lineup.
Triepke struck out two in a perfect sixth. Heilman pitched the final inning as a little warmup for Friday, and he also struck out two in a perfect frame.
Up next
Devils Lake has four more doubleheaders after this one, all at home. The Firebirds have a crucial opportunity against Wahpeton on Friday before facing two tougher teams in Grand Forks Red River and West Fargo Horace on May 5 and 8.
“This is great. I was telling the boys, we’ve got Fargo done, and we don’t have to go on the road, hopefully not till the second and third round of EDC if we keep playing well and doing our jobs,” Luehring said. “It’ll be nice to stay here until the end of May, and hopefully we play well on our home field.”
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