'THIS ONE MEANS A LOT' Braves Win 7th District

Click the thumbnails to see videos and photos taken by Payton Gingras. Also see/hear interviews with Tyler Darmogray, Cam Kelly, and Manager Lucas LaCosse. Click the AUDIO BUTTONS to hear long excerpts from the championship game.

EBEN JUNCTION---The Gladstone Braves won their seventh straight baseball district championship on Friday, but the feeling was a little different for the Braves after their program's other recent championships.

Gladstone pitcher/outfielder Cam Kelly summed it up best.

"We've been through a lot," Kelly said after the Braves held off the Superior Central Cougars in the championship game, 6-3. "This one means a lot to us. So, we're feeling good."

The Braves team, with seven seniors on the roster, endured the cancellation of the 2020 season and the uncertainty of a COVID 2021 season. And they've endured their own poor play at times, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

But on Friday, the team was flawless on defense in a 18-1 win over Newberry in the semifinals, and had no errors in the championship win over a talented Superior Central-Munising combined team.

"This week, I kind of upped the tempo of our practices," Gladstone Manager Lucas Lacosse said. "I told the guys to play deeper, and I hit them some shots. I was pounding them, left, right, anywhwere they were playing. I said that would be some of the hardest things that they would see this year, what I was hitting, and tried to simulate what they were going to see in the game. I think that really helped them."

Superior Central had already won two games in the tournament (12-9 over Menominee Tuesday and 21-1 over Manistique earlier on Friday), and they had their ace pitcher, Munising sophomore Hayden Rockhill on the mound. Rockhill struck out eleven Braves batters in 4 1/3 innings of work, throwing a speed of fastball that the Braves haven't seen much this season.

But Gladstone scored twice against him in the top of the first inning as Blake Krouth singled and rode home on an RBI triple by Kelly. Kelly then scored on a passed ball to make it 2-0.

"That brought back some confidence," Kelly said. "I really needed that. So, I felt good at the plate today."

Then a scary moment for the Braves.

In the between-inning warmups, a ball from the left side of the infield shotthopped on first baseman Aedan Creten. It hit him in the ear, knocking him down, and causing blood to come out of his ear. Creten lay on the ground while an ambulance came, and they were going to take him away, but once he came to, Creten stayed at the game with a bunch of gauze in his ear.

"I'm very thankful that he's okay," LaCosse said. "It seems like the kid's a ball magnent. I had him last year (in summer league) and he took one, colissions with the catcher. He was arguing with me that he wanted to play and said he could go back in, but I said 'you're done buddy'."

Superior Central (15-6) scored twice in the bottom of the first against Braves starter Trevor Hanson, making him pay for two walks. One of the runs came in on a Dakota Maki sacrafice fly and the other scored on a wild pitch.

Gladstone (16-9) regained the lead in the third inning when Carter Van Brocklin struck out but reached on a wild pitch. An error at shortstop and a walk loaded the bases, and Ryan Polley put down another suicide squeeze to bring home the go-ahead run.

Rockhill got out of a bases loaded jam on a fly ball and strikeout.

In the fifth inning, Krouth smacked a Rockhill fastball and legged out a double. After Braden Sundquist drew a walk, Kelly came through with another RBI hit to bring home Krouth, making it a 4-2 lead. Then after Mason LaChance was hit by a pitch.

That brought up Tyler Darmogray, who has struggled at the plate recently. But this time, Darmogray ended Rockhill's day on the mound when he battled to a 3-2 count and then poked a base hit to right field to bring home two runs, making it a 6-2 lead.

"I really didn't think that I was going to get much to hit today because I wasn't hitting very well, but today, I was actually hitting very well today," Darmogray said. "I figured he was going to just throw me a fastball again because he never threw me a curveball in all of the at-bat. So I figured I would get ready for it. I was making contact on the ball. I really didn't have many errors in the field, and I was throwing pretty good."

Darmogray had a nightmare game in the regular season finale at Norway in which he made four errors, including one that lost the game in extra innings. But he made the defensive play of the game in the fifth inning after the Cougars got a walk to Matt McLaury and he eventually scored on an RBI single by Rockhill.

With Rockhill and Kyle Frusti on base, Dakota Maki hit one up the middle. Darmogray, playing at shortstop, got to the ball, and lunged out to the bag at second to get a force play, ending the inning with the Braves still ahead, 6-3.

"That one was pretty close," Darmogray said. "I got the ball, and then I was just going to go and pivot back to second base. My foot just gave out. So, I just had to dive to second base to get him."

Trevor Hanson threw well for the Braves, allowing only three base hits in five innings of work. His biggest problem was five walks, but he was able to work out of several jams before leaving after throwing 99 pitches over five innings. Kelly came in to pitch.

The Cougars had one last stand in the bottom of the seventh inning, after Parker Maki threw two scoreless innings to keep his team within 6-3. Kelly got the first two outs of the seventh inning, and had two strikes on Rockhill before he drew a walk. Kyle Frusti dumped a single to left field, and then Dakota Maki walked to load the bases.

With the tying runs on base, Kelly got Blake Walther to pop up back to the side of the mound. That's how the game ended, with the Braves' seventh straight district title.

"On the pop up, I threw a fastball," Kelly said. "It was a tight (strike) zone, but I got it done."

Gladstone advances to the regional semifinal Wednesday against Iron Mountain. The Mountaineers won their district in Houghton on Friday, beating Houghton 2-0 and Negaunee 18-1. Right now, the regional game is scheduled to be played up in Houghton, but the MHSAA could move it to a more centralized location later this weekend.

Earlier on Friday, the semifinal games were not close, as Superior Central beat the new Manistique (3-18-1) team, 21-1, and the Braves beat Newberry 18-1. Both games went five innings, and saw multiple defensive errors.

GLADSTONE 18, NEWBERRY 1---Mason LaChance threw all five innings to earn the win, allowing six base hits. The only run for Newberry (7-18-1) came in the third inning on an RBI single by Josh Magnsuson. He had two hits for the Indians.

Logan DePew also had a pair of hits. LaChance struck out eight batters and walked only two. And at the plate, LaChance was 3-for-3 with three runs batted in. Aedan Creten had a single, double, two walks, and scored four times. Braden Sundquist had two hits and a walk, and scored three runs. Magnuson, Newberry's lefthanded pitching ace, gave up 11 runs (nine earned) on eight hits in four innings. He struck out five and walked three.

SUPERIOR CENTRAL 21, MANISTIQUE 1---Dakota Maki pitched all five innings for the Cougars, allowing four hits and one unearned run in the final inning. The Emeralds made seven errors during two bat-around innings for SC. Maki struck out seven and walked no batters in his pitching win. Jack McEvers doubled and scored the only run for Manistique (3-18-1). Carson Sprader was tagged with 16 of the runs (six earned) on nine base hits before he reached his 105-pitch count limit in 3 2/3 innings. Isiah Brow finished up for the Emeralds. Matt McLauryhad two hits, a walk, and scored three times for SC. Dakota Maki, besides his pitching, had two singles and a double, and brought home four runs.