MINOT, ND – Today is championship day at the State Class A Legion Baseball Tournament.

 

American Legion Baseball
Class A

 

 

Semifinal
(E#3) Fargo Jets def. (W#3) Bismarck Senators, 4-3
(E#2) Casselton def. (E#1) Kindred, 7-1

 

 

Championship
(E#2) Casselton vs (E#3) Fargo Jets, 10 am    (if Casselton loses, a second championship follows at 1 pm)
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LEGION BASEBALL-WEST FARGO

 

FARGO, ND – The West Fargo Patriots won the State Class AA Legion Baseball Tournament last week. That qualifies them to play in the American Legion Central Plains Region Tournament in Rapid City, SD. The Patriots will begin play on Wednesday against Sioux Falls, SD at 3:30 pm. It will be the third game in the first round. The Central Plains Region Tournament runs through Sunday. The winners of each of the eight regions advance to the 95th American Legion World Series, Aug. 11-16 in Shelby, N.C.
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NDSU-FCS PRESEASON TEAMS

 

FARGO, N.D. – North Dakota State led the nation with six players selected to the Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-America Team announced Monday. Fullback Hunter Luepke, left tackle Cody Mauch and defensive end Spencer Waege were named to the first team, safety Michael Tutsie was named to the second team, and linebacker James Kaczor and punt returner Jayden Price were third team.

 

Luepke, the Most Outstanding Player in last season’s NCAA national championship game, has been a postseason first team All-American by Stats Perform each of the past two years. Tutsie was a first-team All-America pick by HERO Sports in 2021 and Mauch was an Associated Press second team All-American in 2021. Price made the Stats Perform third team in 2021 and Waege was a second team All-American in 2020 selected by the American Football Coaches Association.

 

South Dakota State also had six selections to the Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-America Team and the Missouri Valley Football Conference led the FCS with 22 total players honored.

 

North Dakota State is scheduled to host Drake in the season opener at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 3, at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome.
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NDSU-STEINDORF

 

AUGUSTA, Ga. (NDSU) – North Dakota State’s Kaedin Steindorf was one of 22 candidates named to the preseason watch list for the 2022 FCS Punter of the Year Award announced Monday. Steindorf, a sophomore from Sherwood, Ore., averaged 40.2 yards per punt in his rookie season with a long of 53 yards in the NCAA championship game against Montana State. Steindorf had four punts of 50-plus yards and pinned 18 punts inside the 20-yard line with only two touchbacks on 50 attempts. Opponents averaged just 5.87 yards per return. The 2022 FCS Punter of the Year watch list was compiled based on the 2021 watch list, all-conference teams, All-America teams and 2022 preseason all-conference teams. The FCS Punter of the Year award was established in 2019 by the Augusta Sports Council, which is also home to the Ray Guy Award presented annually to the top punter at the FBS level. The winner will be selected by a vote of the FCS Punter of the Year Award and Ray Guy Award Committee and announced after the regular season.
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UND FOOTBALL-TICKETS

 

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (UND) – With the 2022 football season less than a month away, the University of North Dakota announced on Monday that single-game tickets will go on sale on Monday, Aug. 15, beginning at 10 a.m. Single-game tickets can be purchased at https://ticketmaster.com, by visiting the UND Ticket Office at Ralph Engelstad Arena or at the Alerus Center Box Office.

 

2022 UND Football Home Schedule
Saturday, Sept. 10 vs. Northern Iowa (Potato Bowl) | 3 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 1 vs. Missouri State (Hall of Fame/Homecoming) | 12 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 22 vs. South Dakota State (#SetTheExpectation | Family Weekend) | 3 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 29 vs. Abilene Christian (Youth Day) | 3 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 12 vs. South Dakota (Senior Day/Military Appreciation) | 12 p.m.

 

All times listed are in central time
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TWINS-TIGERS

 

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Gio Urshela went right back to work after his wife delivered their new daughter and gave the Minnesota Twins a critical comeback victory with the first game-ending home run of his career. The injury-depleted Twins badly needed the jolt. Urshela’s two-run homer in the 10th inning drove in Jose Miranda, who had three RBIs as Minnesota beat the Detroit Tigers 5-3 on Monday night and maintained its one-game lead in the AL Central. “A lot of emotions,” said Urshela, who was on the paternity list for three days while his wife, Danna, gave birth to a healthy girl, Gianna. “Baby and walk-off and winning. It’s good for the team.”

 

The Twins played their first of 20 home games in August, their most in a month since they played 22 times at Metropolitan Stadium in June 1977. The turn of the calendar and the promise of home-field comfort couldn’t have come soon enough, after a 10-12 record in July that saw their slim division lead become even more precarious beneath the weight of a sputtering pitching staff.

 

Aaron Sanchez, who made seven starts for Washington with an 8.33 ERA earlier this season before being released, was called up from Triple-A St. Paul to fill in for Minnesota’s reeling rotation and provided five solid innings. Sanchez gave up four hits, including a two-out RBI single by Barnhart in the fourth, and one walk with eight strikeouts.

 

UP NEXT
Tigers: RHP Matt Manning is slated for reinstatement from the 60-day injured list so he can start Tuesday night, the first appearance for the 2016 first-round draft pick since developing shoulder inflammation on April 16 that forced him off the mound.
Twins: RHP Chris Archer (2-5, 4.04 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound for the middle game of the series, after a season-worst outing when he allowed six runs in three innings at Milwaukee last week. Archer’s turn in the rotation was pushed back one day, prompting Sanchez to be promoted.
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VIKINGS-TRAINING CAMP

 

EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Cameron Dantzler was the most obvious party to perhaps the lowest moment of last season for the Minnesota Vikings, when he backpedaled too deep in the end zone in Detroit and let the Lions complete the game-ending touchdown pass right in front of him. Dantzler has had at least as many downs as ups over his first two years, and now his starting spot has been threatened by a second-round draft pick in Andrew Booth Jr. Nonetheless, the lanky hard hitter who drew the nickname “The Needle” in high school in Louisiana has returned for 2022 with an ample supply of determination, maturity and motivation to show the Vikings and the rest of the NFL that he can be a reliable part of the lineup for seasons to come. “Just doing whatever helps the team. If me not starting helps the team win, then I’m OK with it. I’m a team-first guy. Booth, he looks pretty good. He brings a lot of juice to the secondary. I know that part,” Dantzler said.

 

After a standout training camp as a rookie in 2020, the third-round selection from Mississippi State earned a starting spot and had flashes of success. Listed at 6-foot-2 and just 190 pounds, Dantzler missed five games to a variety of injuries (rib, hamstring, concussion). He was hurt again in another setback during spring 2021 practice (quadriceps). While he didn’t miss any games to injury he was a healthy scratch for the opener after falling out of favor of head coach Mike Zimmer and the defensive staff. “It was kind of a bumpy road. I feel like Year 3 will be my best year. I’m more confident than ever. Picked up weight. Did everything I needed to do this offseason to get better,” Dantzler said.

 

During practice on Monday, Dantzler was beaten by K.J. Osborn for a 30-yard touchdown pass in a full-team 2-minute drill. So the learning curve has yet to completely flatten. But to hear his coaches and teammates tell it, Dantzler has come a long way from the struggles of last fall. “He’s working with a new slate with a new coaching staff. I believe he’s more dialed in. He doesn’t have the outside noise, and you can tell,” cornerback Patrick Peterson said. “I’m proud as heck of him. You can tell he was willing to take that next step throughout the offseason.”

 

Peterson, who in his 12th season in the league is the only sure bet for the Vikings at this vital position, has spent plenty of time with Dantzler and the other youngsters since arriving as a free agent last year. Peterson’s strongest impact this offseason on Dantzler was to teach him how to study opponents in a deliberate manner that can carry over to the field in a more meaningful way. “He taught me a lot on how to break down film, how to make the game slow down,” Dantzler said.

 

After switching his jersey number from 27 to 3, which he wore in college, Dantzler has visual evidence of the fresh start. Far more poignantly and painfully, he also has the memory of his former teammate, Jeff Gladney, to guide him this season. Gladney, who was in Dantzler’s draft class and played for the Vikings in 2020 before being released amid off-the-field trouble, died in a car crash earlier this year after signing with the Arizona Cardinals. Dantzler reported to camp last week carrying Gladney’s No. 22 jersey and said he has dedicated the season to his late friend. He spoke with Gladney two days before his death and had planned to visit him in the Dallas area soon after the crash. “I know he would love to be back out there,” Dantzler said. “Everything I do this year is for him.”
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MLB-TRADE DEADLINE

 

NEW YORK (AP) — The trade market got busy ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, with the New York Yankees acquiring pitcher Frankie Montas from Oakland for four prospects. As contenders bulked up ahead of stretch runs and possible postseason appearances, San Diego got All-Star closer Josh Hader from first-place Milwaukee on Monday, and Houston obtained designated hitter/first baseman Trey Mancini from Baltimore as part of a three-team trade that included Tampa Bay. The AL West leaders also added catcher Christian Vázquez from Boston, which in turn acquired outfielder Tommy Pham from Cincinnati. St. Louis obtained left-hander José Quintana and right-hander Chris Stratton from Pittsburgh, and Milwaukee added right-hander Matt Bush from Texas. World Series champion Atlanta acquired outfielder Robbie Grossman from Detroit and brought back infielder Ehire Adrianza from Washington. The Yankees got reliever Scott Effross from the Chicago Cubs, and the Chicago White Sox obtained left-hander Jake Diekman from Boston. Montas became the second front-line starting pitcher to switch teams ahead of the deadline, after Seattle got Luis Castillo from Cincinnati.