Panthers Make Memorable State Run

ST. CLOUD — South Ridge capped another successful high school baseball season with a fourth-place finish at the Minnesota Class A State Baseball Tournament, opening with a 7-0 quarterfinal victory over Brandon-Evansville before suffering a pair of one-run losses to Red Lake County (4-3) in the semifinals and Murray County Central (5-4) in the third-place game. The Panthers finished 23-6 and reached the state semifinals for just the third time in school history, coming within a single run of advancing to the championship game.



South Ridge opened the tournament in dominant fashion as senior Gavin Willeck threw a complete-game shutout and the Panthers rolled past Brandon-Evansville 7-0. The victory advanced South Ridge to the state semifinals, where it squared off against defending state champion Red Lake County in one of the tournament's most competitive games.

The Panthers and Rebels were tied entering the sixth inning before Red Lake County pushed across the eventual winning run in a 4-3 decision.

"It was a very tight game the whole way," South Ridge head coach Aaron Weber said. "It's baseball. A couple things don't go your way. In the end, we just didn't give ourselves enough opportunities to score, and they did. That was really the difference."

Coach Weber said the game could easily have gone either direction.

"If you play that exact game with the same lineup and the same pitchers 10 times, I'm guessing it's five and five," Weber said. "It was a well-fought battle. We lost, and it hurts, but that's baseball."

The Panthers were limited to three hits by Red Lake County ace Ben Gullingsrud, who also helped lead the Rebels to the state title a year earlier.

"He's a gamer," Weber said. "We haven't faced a lot of guys like him this year. He threw a pretty sharp ball. We still had chances to win the game, but we just didn't get it done."

South Ridge had little time to recover emotionally before returning to the field for the third-place game. The Panthers built a 3-0 lead against Murray County Central before a four-run fifth inning turned the game around.

"Our boys were pretty emotional after that semifinal loss," Weber said. "We were one play away from getting to the championship game. It was hard to bounce back."

Despite finishing fourth, Weber said the tournament run should not overshadow what the Panthers accomplished during the season.

"It kind of leaves a bad taste because of how close we were, but it was still a great season," Weber said. "We played really good teams, traveled all over the state, went to Florida, and made a lot of memories. There are a lot of really good baseball players who never get the chance to play on that field. Our guys got that opportunity, and that's pretty special."

The Panthers finished the year with a 23-6 record. Seniors Benjamin Pretasky and Gavin Willeck earned All-State honors, while Pretasky was also selected to the Class A All-Tournament Team after helping lead South Ridge's memorable state tournament run.

Panthers Blank Chargers, Reach Semifinals

ST. CLOUD — South Ridge rode a dominant pitching performance from senior Gavin Willeck and an explosive offensive attack to earn a spot in the Minnesota Class A State Baseball Tournament semifinals, defeating Brandon-Evansville 7-0 on June 11 at Joe Faber Field.

The Panthers scored in five different innings and controlled the game from start to finish behind Willeck's complete-game shutout. He scattered seven hits, walked one, and struck out five while never allowing Brandon-Evansville to mount a serious threat.

South Ridge took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on Samuel Pretasky's RBI triple and steadily built the advantage with runs in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Benjamin Pretasky powered the offense, finishing 3-for-4 with a home run, triple and two RBIs. Samuel Pretasky and Kingsley Archambault each added RBI triples, while Parker Morse drove in two runs.

Box Score

South Ridge 7, Brandon-Evansville 0

South Ridge Leaders

• Benjamin Pretasky: 3-for-4, HR, 3B, 2 RBI
• Samuel Pretasky: 1-for-3, 3B, RBI
• Kingsley Archambault: 1-for-3, 3B, RBI
• Parker Morse: 1-for-4, 2 RBI
• Gavin Willeck (W): 7 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K

Brandon-Evansville Leaders

• Simon Quinn: 2-for-3, 2B
• Jack Kelly: 2-for-3
• Evan Dingwall: 1-for-3
• Landon Sullivan (L): 5 IP, 7 R, 6 ER, 4 BB

Rebels Edge Panthers In Semifinal

ST. CLOUD — South Ridge's state championship hopes came up one run short as Red Lake County held off the Panthers for a 4-3 victory in the Minnesota Class A State Tournament semifinals on June 12 at Joe Faber Field.

The Panthers erased an early deficit and tied the game in the fifth inning, but Red Lake County answered with the go-ahead run and held on behind a complete-game effort from Ben Gullingsrud.

Kingsley Archambault led South Ridge by going 1-for-2 with a triple, run scored and RBI. Samuel Pretasky added a double and a run scored, while Peyton Sivongsay drove in a run. Benjamin Pretasky and Archambault combined for nine strikeouts on the mound.

Will Gieseke scored twice and drove in a run for Red Lake County, while Dawson Erickson contributed a hit, run scored and stolen base.

Box Score

Red Lake County 4, South Ridge 3

South Ridge Leaders

• Kingsley Archambault: 1-for-2, 3B, R, RBI
• Samuel Pretasky: 1-for-3, 2B, R
• Peyton Sivongsay: RBI
• Benjamin Pretasky: 2 IP, 4 K
• Kingsley Archambault (L): 4 IP, 5 K

Red Lake County Leaders

• Will Gieseke: 1-for-2, 2 R, RBI
• Dawson Erickson: 1-for-2, R, SB
• Gunnar Halverson: RBI
• Cain Cardinal: RBI
• Ben Gullingsrud (W): 7 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 0 ER, 5 K

Panthers Finish Fourth At State

ST. CLOUD — South Ridge built an early three-run lead but could not hold off Murray County Central, falling 5-4 in the Class A State Tournament third-place game on June 12 at Joe Faber Field.

The Panthers led 3-0 through four innings before Murray County Central took advantage of defensive miscues during a four-run fifth inning. South Ridge rallied in the seventh and brought the tying run aboard, but the comeback ended one run short.

Samuel Pretasky paced the Panthers offensively, going 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk. Daniel Hakes added an RBI hit, while Blake Olson drove in a run and scored. Parker Morse suffered the loss despite allowing just four hits over five innings, with all four runs against him unearned.

Murray County Central scored five runs on only four hits and received strong pitching from Dugan Kluis and Teague Meyer, who earned the save.

Box Score

Murray County Central 5, South Ridge 4

Murray County Central Leaders

• Teague Meyer: 1-for-4, RBI, R
• Tristan Behrends: 1-for-3, RBI, BB, 2 SB
• Carter Hanson: 1-for-3, RBI, R
• Dugan Kluis (W): 6 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 6 BB, 2 K
• Teague Meyer (SV): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K

South Ridge Leaders

• Samuel Pretasky: 2-for-3, RBI, BB
• Daniel Hakes: 1-for-3, RBI
• Blake Olson: RBI, R
• Parker Morse (L): 5 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 1 K