RENNER, S.D. — The Storm hit three home runs and were in the driver’s seat through five innings of Saturday’s game against Lincoln North Star.
It ended up getting away from them.
Despite bombs from Will Heilman, Mason Palmer and Landon Sundeen, Devils Lake (3-3) couldn’t hold onto a four-run lead and lost 7-5 to Lincoln North Star (12-3) in the second game of Sub-Pool B play at Renner Ballpark. Devils Lake allowed four runs in the bottom of the sixth.
“It’s a seven-inning game, and we’ve got to play all seven innings,” Devils Lake coach Eric Nygaard said. “It’s a learning experience. We’ll take our lumps and get better at the end.”
The Storm fell to 1-1 in this year’s Dakota Classic. That made Devils Lake the second-place team from Sub-Pool B, moving the squad to a 5 p.m. matchup with the first-place team from Sub-Pool A, Creighton Prep, which went 2-0.
Lincoln North Star heads into the rest of pool play as the first-place team from Sub-Pool B with a 2-0 record.
“They had a good team, too. They had some good hitters,” Nygaard said of Lincoln North Star. “Their 2-3-4-5 hitters, they put the ball in play.”
The Storm’s power fueled them to an early lead.
In 2025, Devils Lake didn’t hit a single home run at the varsity or A level. But the 2026 Storm tallied five long balls in their first 11 innings of the 2026 Dakota Classic. It gave them six home runs already this summer.
“It kind of goes back to last year, and I think what Coach [Brent] Luehring does in the high school season,” Nygaard said. “There’s a process to hitting. And that process, if you trust it, the power will come. We talked about that last year. If you stick to this, the power will eventually come. But the biggest thing is pitch selection, is don’t get yourself out on pitches you can’t hit. And when you get your pitch to hit, take advantage of it.”
Heilman joined the homer party to get the scoring started. With two spring bombs already under his belt, he smacked his first of the summer to give Devils Lake a 2-0 lead in the first inning. He added a little bat flip before he rounded the bases.
Two innings later, Mason Palmer homered for the second straight day. It was another two-run shot, making it a 4-0 Storm advantage.
Cayden McCarthy got the start on the bump. He held Lincoln North Star scoreless through the first four innings, striking out two each in the first and fourth. He worked around four hits, including a pair of two-out singles in the first and an infield hit in the third.
Lincoln North Star got to McCarthy after the first two runners reached in the bottom of the fifth. Leadoff hitter Logan Murphy tagged an RBI single that brought in an extra run after it was booted in left field.
Devils Lake, though, pulled off a 7-6-5 relay to retire Murphy trying to advance to third. It loomed even larger after pitcher Easton Wesslund hit a solo shot two batters later. It cut the Storm lead to 4-3, but could have tied it without the out on the basepaths.
Sundeen hit what was, at the time, a massive insurance boost in the sixth inning. He slammed a solo shot for Devils Lake’s third bomb of the day, making it 5-3. It was his first homer at the Legion A level after he hit two for the B team last year.
McCarthy’s afternoon on the mound ended after five innings and 89 pitches. He allowed three runs on seven hits while striking out five and walking one.
“Cayden, I thought threw very well,” Nygaard said. “A couple pitches kind of got away from him there.”
Brody Rainsberry took over and was burned by free passes. Three of the first four hitters reached to load the bases. Coach Jeff Carpenter paid a visit to the mound, but Rainsberry proceeded to hit his second batter of the inning to force in a run. A wild pitch tied it at 5-5, and Murphy hit a two-run single to right field to give Lincoln North Star a 7-5 lead.
“We kind of knew that we have long relievers, and then we have short relievers, and so we’re gonna kind of stick to that plan,” Nygaard said. “If our starters can’t go, you know what? We’ve got our next two guys to go.”
Rainsberry allowed four runs on one hit, two walks and two hit batsmen in 1/3 of an inning.
Tayven Wiberg was able to finish the frame, stranding two runners.
With one last chance, Devils Lake went down 1-2-3 in the seventh. Wesslund ended up pitching a complete game on 102 pitches. He allowed three homers, but he struck out six and limited the Storm to seven hits.
Devils Lake had Fausten Olson, Ben Brodina and Rainsberry on the bench to start the game. Wiberg, Sundeen and Alex Hammond were slotted into the starting lineup instead.
“It’s a team effort,” Nygaard said. “And we informed the boys that we’re gonna play everybody on this team, because everybody’s gonna have to contribute at some point. And we’ve got to trust that everybody’s gonna give their best effort. So we’re gonna stick with that game plan.”
After Saturday’s nightcap, Devils Lake will conclude pool play at noon Sunday against the second-place team from Sub-Pool A, the St. Peter Saints. The Storm could still potentially win the pool with wins in both games.