Tigers take third in Legion baseball regional

At one point, Farmington had 13-game postseason winning streak

Farmington’s run in the American Legion baseball playoffs concluded with a third-place finish in the Central Plains Regional in West Fargo, North Dakota.

The Tigers, who are Minnesota state champions, were 3-2 in the regional and were knocked out of the double-elimination tournament after a 17-3 loss to eventual champion Fargo on Aug. 11. Fargo went on to defeat Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 9-3 in the championship game. After losing its first regional game to Elkhorn, Nebraska, Fargo won five in a row to take the regional championship and earn a place in the American Legion World Series this week in Shelby, North Carolina.

Farmington, making its first appearance in an American Legion regional, finished its season 28-7.

The Tigers’ regional tournament opened with dominant victories over Renner, South Dakota, and Elkhorn in the first two rounds Aug. 7-8. Dillon Carlson drove in two runs and Ethan Bombardier was the winning pitcher as Farmington defeated Renner 7-2. Bombardier pitched the first 4.2 innings before reaching the daily pitch limit, and Connor Stember worked the last 2.1 innings to earn the save.

Jovan Hunter pitched four shutout innings and struck out seven as Farmington defeated Elkhorn 9-1 in the second round. The Tigers took control in the bottom of the first inning, scoring six runs. Highlights included a run-scoring single by Trevor Rasmusson, a two-run single by Kelin Rasmussen and an RBI single by Jack Minnick. Rasmussen also scored on a double steal and Connor Hennen was awarded home plate on a balk.

Rasmusson, who was named most outstanding player at the Minnesota state tournament, was 2-for-5 and drove in three runs. Rasmussen drove in two runs and Tyler Sullivan was 3-for-3.

The victory over Elkhorn was Farmington’s 13th in a row in the 2024 postseason. The streak came to an abrupt halt when Cedar Rapids defeated the Tigers 15-0 in a winners’ bracket game Aug. 9. Cedar Rapids sent 15 batters to the plate in the fourth inning and scored 12 runs on eight hits. Four other Cedar Rapids batters were hit by pitches and another reached base when a third strike got away from the Tigers’ catcher.

Hennen’s leadoff single in the second inning was Farmington’s only hit of the five-inning game.

Rasmussen pitched a four-hit complete game and Dalton Kesti was 2-for-2 with two RBIs and one run in Farmington’s 5-2 elimination-bracket victory over Papillion (Nebraska) South on Aug. 10.

After falling behind 1-0 in the top of the first, Farmington responded with four runs. Josh Berreth scored the Tigers’ first run on a throwing error, Carlson came home on a groundout and Kesti brought in two more with a single. Sullivan singled in a run in the fifth.

A 17-3 loss to Fargo on Aug. 11 ended the Tigers’ tournament and season. Fargo scored seven runs in the top of the first inning, added two in the second and five more in the third. A three-run fifth inning finished the offensive blitz.

Carlson had two of Farmington’s five hits and drove in a run. Hennen had a single and RBI.

Mike Shaughnessy can be reached at mike.shaughnessy@apgecm.com.