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Aug. 11—MITCHELL — There's a lot of pride in the Cornbelt League for amateur baseball.
That pride is also represented in wins at the Class B state tournament, as well.
With the most qualifiers (seven) in the 32-team bracket, the Cornbelt went 6-1 in the first round and improved to a record of 7-1 midway through the second round, as Dell Rapids PBR is already in the quarterfinals.
Two more Cornbelt quarterfinalists are guaranteed, because the Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks and Dell Rapids Mudcats are facing each other on Tuesday night, and the Flandreau Cardinals and Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks are taking each other on Wednesday night. The Canova Gang also has a shot to make it to the quarterfinal round, facing Redfield on Wednesday.
Because of that, the Cornbelt will have at least three times in the quarterfinals for a third consecutive state tournament and has had multiple teams in the final eight for the ninth year in a row.
The Gang are considered a strong club each year but nearly didn't make it, and were saved after winning the last-chance game in the district tournament over Madison to qualify for the state bracket.
"We were the last team in, so you can see how competitive it is," Canova shortstop Justin Miller said. "Any team that makes it from the Cornbelt has a shot. The depth of the league is always apparent. Even the teams that get beat out, they're all pretty good."
Four of the last five state champions have come from the Cornbelt, with the Dell Rapids Mudcats winning the 2021 and 2022 titles, Canova claiming the 2023 championship and Dell Rapids PBR winning the state tournament the last time it was in Mitchell in 2024. The Sunshine League's Parkston Rays denied the Cornbelt in 2025, rallying to top the Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks.
For the teams that don't make the state tournament, there's talented pickup players that become available. Miller pointed out that the Gang benefited from adding Madison's Dawson Bakker, who had two hits and two RBIs in Canova's first-round win over Castlewood.
The number of Class B teams per league in the state tournament are allocated based on league size. The Cornbelt has 10 Class B members, which is the largest of the seven leagues, leading to the seven slots in the state bracket. Salem, which fell 9-7 to Volga in the first round, was the seventh team to reach the state bracket and did so despite being seeded No. 8 in the state-qualifying district tournament.
"To be able to come out and show that the Cornbelt is legit, because we pull the most teams, there's a lot of pride in showing that. We want to be the ones that back that up," Gamecocks pitcher Blake Svoboda said after the first round.
In the previous 10 state tournaments, taking place from 2016 to 2025, Cornbelt teams had a record of 90-58 in the Class B bracket, a winning percentage of nearly 61%. That is second only to the Sunshine League, which was 89-47 and had a winning percentage of 65% in that decade.
The Cornbelt and Sunshine leagues had two first-round matchups against each other and the Cornbelt won both: The Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks won 2-1 over the Parkston Rays in that state title rematch from 2025 and the Dell Rapids Mudcats defeated Winner/Colome 11-3 in a repeat of the 2025 first-round matchup.
"It makes the season mean more," Dell Rapids PBR's Zack Puetz said. "The Cornbelt and the Sunshine leagues especially, it means a lot to those teams and their players. Seeing the bracket come out the way it did, I felt like we got a good draw. There's always a lot of interest in the bracket and how it always creates paths for the teams but everyone knows you need to get five wins to win it all."
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That pride is also represented in wins at the Class B state tournament, as well.
With the most qualifiers (seven) in the 32-team bracket, the Cornbelt went 6-1 in the first round and improved to a record of 7-1 midway through the second round, as Dell Rapids PBR is already in the quarterfinals.
Two more Cornbelt quarterfinalists are guaranteed, because the Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks and Dell Rapids Mudcats are facing each other on Tuesday night, and the Flandreau Cardinals and Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks are taking each other on Wednesday night. The Canova Gang also has a shot to make it to the quarterfinal round, facing Redfield on Wednesday.
Because of that, the Cornbelt will have at least three times in the quarterfinals for a third consecutive state tournament and has had multiple teams in the final eight for the ninth year in a row.
The Gang are considered a strong club each year but nearly didn't make it, and were saved after winning the last-chance game in the district tournament over Madison to qualify for the state bracket.
"We were the last team in, so you can see how competitive it is," Canova shortstop Justin Miller said. "Any team that makes it from the Cornbelt has a shot. The depth of the league is always apparent. Even the teams that get beat out, they're all pretty good."
Four of the last five state champions have come from the Cornbelt, with the Dell Rapids Mudcats winning the 2021 and 2022 titles, Canova claiming the 2023 championship and Dell Rapids PBR winning the state tournament the last time it was in Mitchell in 2024. The Sunshine League's Parkston Rays denied the Cornbelt in 2025, rallying to top the Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks.
For the teams that don't make the state tournament, there's talented pickup players that become available. Miller pointed out that the Gang benefited from adding Madison's Dawson Bakker, who had two hits and two RBIs in Canova's first-round win over Castlewood.
The number of Class B teams per league in the state tournament are allocated based on league size. The Cornbelt has 10 Class B members, which is the largest of the seven leagues, leading to the seven slots in the state bracket. Salem, which fell 9-7 to Volga in the first round, was the seventh team to reach the state bracket and did so despite being seeded No. 8 in the state-qualifying district tournament.
"To be able to come out and show that the Cornbelt is legit, because we pull the most teams, there's a lot of pride in showing that. We want to be the ones that back that up," Gamecocks pitcher Blake Svoboda said after the first round.
In the previous 10 state tournaments, taking place from 2016 to 2025, Cornbelt teams had a record of 90-58 in the Class B bracket, a winning percentage of nearly 61%. That is second only to the Sunshine League, which was 89-47 and had a winning percentage of 65% in that decade.
The Cornbelt and Sunshine leagues had two first-round matchups against each other and the Cornbelt won both: The Hartford/Humboldt Gamecocks won 2-1 over the Parkston Rays in that state title rematch from 2025 and the Dell Rapids Mudcats defeated Winner/Colome 11-3 in a repeat of the 2025 first-round matchup.
"It makes the season mean more," Dell Rapids PBR's Zack Puetz said. "The Cornbelt and the Sunshine leagues especially, it means a lot to those teams and their players. Seeing the bracket come out the way it did, I felt like we got a good draw. There's always a lot of interest in the bracket and how it always creates paths for the teams but everyone knows you need to get five wins to win it all."
Continue reading...
