Braves' best season in over 2 decades comes to a close with loss to Bird Island

A week removed from earning their first MBA State Tournament victory since the turn of the Millennium, the Le Sueur Braves made the trip to Green Isle’s Irish Yard to face off against the Section 4 champions, the Bird Island Bullfrogs. A rough first inning for the Braves set the tone for the night and eventually it was the Bullfrogs scoring seven runs in the sixth and seventh innings that allowed them to earn a 10-0 victory over Le Sueur, bringing an end to a memorable season.

The game started with some promise for the Braves as Bryce Novak singled out of the leadoff spot and after a strikeout, Cole Pengilly continued his postseason hot streak with a single of his own. After a fielder’s choice moved Novak and Pengilly to second and third, a groundout to second ended the early scoring chance.

The bottom of the first inning proved disastrous though with a fielding error, single and hit by pitch loading the bases with no outs. A bases loaded walk scored the first run of the night and two batters later, a single into the outfield scored two more runs to give the Bullfrogs a 3-0 advantage.

The game fell into a defensive groove at this point which saw neither team bring a run across the plate until the sixth inning despite Pengilly continuing his amazing state tournament run with two more singles, ending his incredible performance at state with a perfect 7-7 at the plate with a walk and a home run.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, a pair of hit-by pitches and a throwing error allowed Bird Island to tack on four more runs and in the seventh, three more runs were scored with a two-run double earning the Bullfrogs the 10-0 victory via run rule.

While the season itself came to an unceremonious close for the Braves, the foundation for a new generation of town ball excellence has been created in Le Sueur and with further MBA changes regarding league realignment, the future is bright in the River Valley.