After finishing the second-longest game in ALWS history early Saturday, Fargo Post 2 comes back to beat Hudson (Mass.) Post 100 to wrap up pool play.
Less than 10 hours after Fargo (N.D.) Post 2 had left the field following a historic win in the American Legion World Series, they were back on Veterans Field at Keeter Stadium in Shelby, N.C. for another win, a 12-3 victory over Hudson (Mass.) Post 100 in the Stars Division pool play finale for both teams.
Fargo coach Luke Rustad said he gave his team a simple message after its emotional 5-4, 14-inning win over Troy (Ala.) Post 70 in a game that started at 7:05 p.m. Friday and ended at 1:17 a.m. Saturday.
“All I told them before today’s game was, ‘You can lose today and everybody will tell you it’s OK because you were tired,’“ Rustad said. “But don’t ever let that be an excuse. I said, ‘Just reset yourselves and find the energy to go out and get another one.’”
Did Rustad’s team ever get that message.
Even after most players didn’t go to bed until 3:30 a.m. Saturday with a 9 a.m. wakeup call and with hot, humid weather with temperatures in the high 80s that’s uncommon for North Dakota, Post 2 seemed to play with an even greater resolve in Game 7 against Hudson.
Fargo scored four runs in the bottom of the first inning, increased its lead to 7-0 after three innings and 8-0 after four innings then responded to Hudson’s three-run fifth with two runs in the fifth and sixth innings.
“We were able to get a good lead early and made them play catch-up,” Rustad said. “They put a big push on us there in the fifth. But we made some big pitches to get out of it and answered back right away.”
Sam Ovsak (3 hits, double, 3 RBIs), Wyatt Kosidowski (3 hits, 3 RBIs), Adam Leininger (2 hits, 2 RBIs) and Brady Manly (2 hits, double, 2 RBIs) led Fargo’s 14-hit offense and starter Bo Meier (4 1/3 innings) and reliever Beckett Stimpson (2 2/3 innings) combined on a six-hitter.
Fargo (50-9) is now finished in pool play with a 2-1 record and will await the outcome of Sunday’s 7 p.m. game between defending ALWS champion League City (Tex.) Post 554 and 2022 ALWS champion Troy; League City is 2-0 and Troy 1-1 in pool play.
The top two teams in each division will advance to Monday’s crossover semifinals.
“It’ll feel good to have a day off,” Rustad said. “It’ll let us relax and connect with the kids. We’re going to come over as a team to watch the last game.”
For Hudson (29-11), the loss ends their pool play with an 0-3 record and concludes a magical season; Post 100 had never qualified for a state tournament as a non-host until this season and finished Massachusetts runner-up before going 5-0 to win the Northeast Regional in its first-ever national American Legion Baseball postseason games.
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