COLD SPRING — Brandon-Evansville’s second trip to the state tournament in program history ended with the Chargers finding their stride again.
After falling in the Minnesota State High School League Class A quarterfinals on Thursday, B-E responded with two wins on Friday, June 12, rallying past Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton 15-8 in the consolation semifinals before shutting out Ogilvie 6-0 in the fifth-place game.
The Chargers fell behind JWP 5-0 in the first inning after Chase Gerdts was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, Blayne Wandrie singled in two runs, an error brought in another run and Wandrie scored on a tag-up.
JWP added a run in the third to take a 6-2 lead, but B-E answered with five runs on five hits in the bottom half. Bryce Froemming delivered the biggest swing, doubling on the sixth pitch of his at-bat to drive in two runs and give the Chargers a 7-6 lead.
B-E kept adding on from there, scoring three runs in the fourth, three in the fifth and two in the sixth.
Ryder Baune earned the win in relief, allowing three unearned runs on two hits over 6 2/3 innings. He struck out six and walked four after Aidyn Meissner started and allowed five runs, one earned, in the first inning.
Colton Breitkreutz went 3-for-5 with a triple, double and single. Jack Kelly, Seth Thoennes and Evan Dingwall also had three hits apiece as B-E finished with 16 hits. The Chargers stole 11 bases, with Kelly, Simon Quinn and Thoennes each stealing multiple bases.
B-E carried that momentum into the fifth-place game, where Breitkreutz, Kelly and Dingwall combined on a three-hit shutout against Ogilvie.
The Chargers scored in the first when Kelly grounded out to bring in a run, then added another in the second on an Ogilvie error. B-E scored twice in the fourth and twice more in the sixth to close out the 6-0 win.
Kelly threw five scoreless innings in relief, allowing three hits while striking out five and walking three. Breitkreutz opened with a perfect inning, and Dingwall finished the shutout by striking out Matthew Fradette for the final out.
Sawyer Chlian and Dingwall each had two hits for the Chargers. Kelly, Chlian and Thoennes each drove in one run, while Quinn stole three bases. B-E stole eight bases, turned two double plays and played error-free defense.
“It felt great to finish the year with strong pitching, great defense, and running the bases aggressively,” B-E head coach Brian Perleberg said.
Brandon-Evansville finished the season 25-3.
Blake Durham is the Sports and Outdoors Editor at the Echo Press. He joined the newspaper in September 2025 and covers various sports in Alexandria and throughout Douglas County. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a bachelor’s degree in communications in 2022.