By With two victories against Watertown, Aberdeen Post 24 has advanced to the Class A American Legion baseball state tournament.
The Smittys beat Watertown 15-4 on Thursday, July 20, taking an early lead and never looking back. The second game on Friday, July 21 at Watertown Stadium was a tight one as Post 17 battled to keep its season alive, but fell 1-0. That ended the best-of-three series.
Pitcher Philip Zens went the distance for the Smittys and drove home the only run of the game on a fielder’s choice in the fourth inning.
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Aberdeen will be the No. 7 seed in the state tourney, which begins Tuesday, July 25 in Yankton. The Smittys open against No. 2 Harrisburg Gold. The game is at 12:30 p.m. The Smittys are 27-16 on the season.
Complete first-round pairings follow.
- No. 1 Sioux Falls East vs. No. 8 Harrisburg Maroon, 10 a.m.
- No. 4 Brookings vs. No. 5 Rapid City, 5 p.m.
- No. 2 Harrisburg Gold vs. No. 7 Aberdeen, 12:30 p.m.
- No. 3 Yankton vs. No. 6 Renner, 7:30 p.m.
The double-elimination tournament ends on Saturday, July 29.