Photos by Noah Clooten
MOORHEAD — The Firebirds’ state tournament efforts fell just short.
They finally got to play in the late afternoon on Saturday at Bucky Burgau Field, after a slew of postponements that threw the whole EDC tournament field into whack. Devils Lake kicked things off with a 6-2 win over Fargo South (12-13). But in the state qualifier game that followed, the Firebirds (16-12) couldn’t survive a five-run first inning, and they fell 10-6 to West Fargo Horace (18-15).
Their season came to an end.
“I think we surprised a lot of people,” Devils Lake head coach Brent Luehring said. “I mean, preseason No. 9, and we got one EDC win. And I thought we were right there for two other ones. We were right there with an opportunity to go to state and give ourselves a chance, and nobody had that at the beginning of the year.”
Luehring was named EDC Coach of the Year in honor of what his team accomplished.
“It’s a program award. It’s not just me,” Luehring said. “It’s for my kids. My players. My coaches. They did a great job supporting me. Yeah, it’s for them. I get the credit, but it’s their award.”
Seniors Beau Brodina and Jackson Baeth, two leaders of the Devils Lake lineup, saw their high school careers come to an end Saturday. Luehring has been with them since they were in sixth grade, when he first started coaching in Devils Lake. He coached them in basketball, actually, in seventh and eighth grade, and has seen them grow as baseball players over the years.
“I always tell our seniors, ‘You’ve gotta try to leave the program in a better spot than when you started.’ And Jackson can firmly say that. And Beau can firmly say that,” Luehring said. “I can’t thank them enough… I’m really proud of them. They’re great kids.”
Baeth and Parker Brodina were named to the All-EDC Team after the game for their season-long efforts.
Game 1
The first game got off to a quick start for Devils Lake. Mason Palmer threw a 1-2-3 first inning, and the offense put up five before an out was even recorded in the bottom half.
The Firebirds ignited the rally with back-to-back walks, including one from B. Brodina, who worked out of an 0-2 hole. Palmer hit a perfect bunt single to load the bases. Baeth got tied up and tapped it to the third baseman, but the catcher dropped a perfect throw and allowed the game’s first run to score.
P. Brodina then drew the third walk of the inning, making it 2-0. Things were spiraling fast for the Bruins. It went from bad to worse, as Trason Beck hit a routine fly ball to left field that the outfielder completely lost in the sun. It dropped, and three more runs scored.
A couple baserunning mistakes prevented Devils Lake from getting any more runs in the first two innings. Beck was caught by a mile trying to steal third, and B. Brodina was picked off first base after working another quality at-bat where he singled.
Palmer kept things pretty clean through the first three innings on his end. Bruins leadoff hitter Matt Bryant hit a double with a runner on first in the third inning, but Devils Lake executed a perfect relay to nab the runner at home.
The Firebirds had yet another chance to add to their lead in the third inning, with the bases loaded and nobody out. But they blew it. Beck hit into an unlucky lineout, and Will Heilman struck out as Devils Lake stranded three. It offset another fielding mistake by the Bruins, where they tried and failed to retire the middle runner on a sacrifice bunt by P. Brodina.
And then, despite a game that felt like a Devils Lake rout from the beginning, the Bruins inched closer. Palmer lost some of his control, walking the first two batters he faced in the fourth. A single got South on the board, and a groundout brought in another. Second baseman Max Palmer made a diving play to help Mason Palmer get out of the frame with no further damage.
Palmer had a bounceback fifth, allowing just a one-out single. B. Brodina and Taydon Triepke both made nice catches in the corner outfield spots.
The Firebirds added an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth. The Bruins’ left fielder completely misread another ball, this time off P. Brodina’s bat. It allowed Mason Palmer — who reached on a dropped third strike — to advance to third. He scored on a sacrifice fly by Beck, who collected his fourth RBI and extended Devils Lake’s lead to 6-2.
And Palmer settled in the rest of the way. A 4-6-3 double play helped him get through the sixth, and he shut the door with an easy inning. He finished the complete game on 86 pitches, allowing just two runs on four hits.
Game 2
Devils Lake went on to play the No. 7 seed, West Fargo Horace, which upset No. 2 West Fargo in the first round but lost to No. 6 Fargo North. It was a wild affair that saw Horace just outpace Devils Lake slightly in the offense department.
The Firebirds couldn’t extend their Game 1 success into the early goings of Game 2. P. Brodina, the rock of Devils Lake’s pitching staff all season, got smacked for a three-run homer and a two-run homer in the first inning.
It was 5-0 with only one out.
“Flat fastballs, and they get hit a long ways,” Luehring said. “It’s hard because if you fall behind, you can’t throw your offspeed. Maybe we could have went to curveballs for strikes earlier, but he didn’t show any command of it in the warmups.”
After issuing a walk, Brodina’s day on the mound came to an end. He switched spots with first baseman Hunter Remmick, who struck out the next two and retired the first five batters he faced.
Baserunning troubles continued to haunt Devils Lake. B. Brodina led off the home half of the first with a single, but he was doubled up on a soft line drive to right field.
Still, the Firebirds kept fighting. With Remmick holding things together on the mound, the All-EDC players — Baeth and P. Brodina — led off the second with back-to-back singles. Beck hit into an unlucky lineout, but Heilman picked him up, hitting a two-run double to get Devils Lake back in it.
Remmick’s command started to fade in the third. He walked a pair, and gave up a two-out single to widen the deficit to 6-2.
But the Firebirds kept the line moving. The top two hitters in the order both got on base, with B. Brodina reaching on an error and Fausten Olson hitting an infield single. Mason Palmer laid down a sacrifice bunt, and the pitcher threw it away. A run appeared to score.
Not so fast.
After the play was over, Palmer was called out for running inside the baseline. The run was void, and everyone had to return to their previous positions.
“From my angle at third, I couldn’t see it,” Luehring said. “But my first base coach thought it was pretty questionable. But it is what it is. Can’t take it back. They’re not gonna overturn it from my opinion.”
Devils Lake ended up scoring three runs that inning anyway — an outburst that would have been bigger if the call hadn’t been overturned. Baeth walked to load the bases, and Beck and Heilman both came through with huge hits. Their knocks got the Firebirds within a run, 6-5.
But then it was the Hawks’ turn again. An RBI double took Remmick out of the game in favor of Max Palmer. Mason’s twin brother retired both batters he faced in the fourth — but he also committed back-to-back balks, each of which brought in a run. Suddenly, Devils Lake was trailing by four again, down 9-5.
Max Palmer and Olson both singled in the bottom of the inning, and Mason Palmer lined an RBI double. It was a three-run game again, and Devils Lake was rallying.
P. Brodina appeared to hit an ordinary sacrifice fly — but then another baserunning mistake bit Devils Lake in the butt.
The Hawks noticed that Olson left third base early, so they threw down to third for an appeal. And they won. Olson was called out, so another run was nullified, and that’s how the fourth inning ended.
“I don’t know what they were doing,” Luehring said. “Some line drive balls that they must not have read. I don’t know. That’s just…I don’t know. I don’t know if the pressure, or what.”
Max Palmer surrendered a solo shot in the fifth to give Horace its 10th run. After a single and a hit batter, Luehring replaced him with Thursday’s starting pitcher, Ben Larson. He issued a walk to load the bases but escaped the jam with no further trouble.
Larson held it together for 1 2/3 scoreless innings. Baeth recorded the final two outs.
By then, the Firebirds had had the wind taken out of them, and they never got much additional offense going. They did have a pair of two-out baserunners in the fifth — Larson and Max Palmer — but both were stranded. In the sixth, P. Brodina collected his second hit of the game.
Then in the seventh, all three Firebirds struck out.
The game was over. The season was over.
“We hit the baseball. We had some uncharacteristic baserunning mistakes,” Luehring said. “And we answered. We could have gave up when it was 5-0, two home runs. And they came back and competed. That’s all I can ask of them. We had a really nice year.”
Horace will be one of the four teams from the EDC going to state. As for Devils Lake, now it’s time for American Legion baseball, with games beginning in early June.
