Post 131 baseball suffers early exit at state tourney
Submitted photo
BV Post 131 Legion Baseball team’s 2025 season came to a close following back-to-back losses in the double-elimination state tournament. Members of the team are, from left, row one: Ryland Carroll, Brayden Knutson, Ryder Mueller, Tristan Culp, Bryton Stroh, Cooper Ness and Luke Felderman; row two: Coach Evan Steemken, Jack Blomgren, Mason Veld, Jacob Halseth, Will VanLeur, Caleb Severin, Max Peters, Christopher Joseph, Luke Smart and Coach Jeremy Van Heel.
After a sensational post-season run in this spring’s high school baseball season where Brandon Valley won a state title, things kind of fizzled during this year’s summer Legion state tournament for Post 131.
Brandon Valley bowed out with two straight losses in the double-elimination state tournament in Watertown last week, capping their season at 25-18 overall.
The tournament opened Tuesday with a bit of a surprise when top-seed Rapid City Post 22 lost to Rapid City Post 320. That opener sent shock waves through players, coaches and fans.
“It opened the door for everybody in the state,” Brandon Valley head coach Jeremy VanHeel said.
But the Lynx couldn’t take advantage, losing in their opener, 6-2 to Renner Post 307.
The Lynx managed just four hits in the loss, all singles from Ryder Mueller, Ryland Carroll, Max Peters and Bryton Stroh. Stroh and Jack Blomgren each had an RBI.
O’Gorman’s Jackson Bjorkman held Post 131 in check, going the distance and striking out seven.
Despite the sluggish start, the Lynx had a shot in the bottom of the sixth with the bases loaded and one out, down four runs. But an unfortunate 6-4-3 double play ended the threat.
“Defensively we played solid but offensively we just didn’t have the timely hits,” VanHeel said of the opening-round loss. “We didn’t have those big hits that we’ve kind of had throughout the year to get us wins. We were just missing it at the right time.”
The loss sent the Lynx to the loser’s bracket where they now had to get past the top seed in Rapid City 22. And it looked dire after 22 scored seven times in the bottom of the third to jump out to a 7-0 lead.
But don’t count out the Lynx. BV dug in and scored four in the top of fourth, chipping into Post 22’s 7-4 lead. By the seventh, Brandon Valley trailed 11-4 before taking another shot at 22.
Post 131 cut it to 11-7 and had the bases loaded with their 3-4-5 hitters on deck in Carroll, Peters and Stroh. Carroll walked to inch closer at 11-8, as did Peters to trim it to 11-9. Stroh hit a hard ground ball to third resulting in the final out.
“We showed a lot of heart. They’re a very good team and we didn’t go down easy,” VanHeel said. “Bryton’s been a good hitter all year, and he hit it hard. They just made a play. But if that one sneaks through for a base hit, we tie it. But hats off to them.”
Harrisburg eventually won this year’s Legion tournament, going undefeated over the five games with a 2-0 win over Yankton in Saturday’s championship game.
Although the 2025 baseball season officially wrapped up for Brandon Valley after two quick losses, it was a memorable spring and summer for the Lynx.
The team won their first state high school title since 2018 with a 10-4 win over Sioux Falls Jefferson on May 25. VanHeel was named the high school Coach of the Year.
The Lynx coach later picked up his 400th career win during the summer Legion season. For the entire spring and summer 2025 season, Brandon Valley won 59.5 percent of its games.
Not a bad showing for a young team that loses just two seniors from its Legion team in Carroll and Luke Smart. And both of those players could return next summer as they’re still eligible in regards to age.
“The future is bright for these guys,” VanHeel said of his young roster. “We just need to go back, put some more work in, rejuvenate, and go get it again.”
