“It’s super exciting. It’s a dream I’ve had, and I think it’s our ultimate goal we’ve had for as long as I’ve been in high school, and it’s really exciting to finally get there and play,” MCC senior Teague Meyer said. “It’s just something I think that’s great, not only for this year in the program, but for years to come. You see all the little kids out here, and I think that’s really fun for them to see, too.”

The Rebels were quick to set the tone on both ends of the field and were able to sustain the momentum when the Dragons managed to get runners on base by making a handful of run-saving defensive plays.

“We worked hard to get here. We have all put in the time and the effort to get to this point,” MCC’s Danny Larson said. “The motivation was high … It feels really good to reach all of our goals that we’re at right now, and hopefully we keep on moving forward.”

Meyer had a big night at the plate with three doubles, and went 3 for 4 at the plate with two RBIs. Gabe Tentinger also launched a single home run in the win, while Tristan Behrends also had a pair of doubles with two RBIs and went 2 for 3.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Murray County Central baseball players smile after taking photos after the Section 3A championship on Thursday in Milroy.

Krew Schneider pitched yet another stellar game, tossing seven strikeouts while allowing three hits and three walks in his shutout.

A long time coming

The last, and only, time MCC has been in the state tournament was 25 years ago in 2001, before any of the active players were born. Adding to the historic run, the last time the Rebels played in the section championship was also 24 years ago, in 2002. Slayton High School also qualified for the state tournament in 1992.

“It’s a surreal feeling. I mean, we worked hard for this,” Tentinger said, who also noted that his dad was on the 2001 MCC baseball team that last went to state. “I think it was my dad’s senior year … My dad was the last time [MCC went to state], and now I’m doing it again, so that’s pretty cool.”

“Just super happy. They’ve had a few good years in a row that just came up short, and the guys just stuck together [with] a lot of hard work last summer,” MCC head coach Paul Counter said. “It’s just crazy that it has been 25 years, because we’ve had good baseball at MCC for a lot longer than that. But, there’s good baseball down here, a good section, and our youth programs right now are really thriving, and hopefully it just really helps everything.”

Photo by Samantha Davis: Murray County Central pitcher Krew Schneider smiles after tossing a strikeout for the final out to help the Rebels claim the Section 3A championship on Thursday in Milroy.

MCC set high expectations going into this season after its postseason campaign ended abruptly last year in the elimination quarterfinals with an extra-inning loss to Minneota.

The Rebels’ only loss this season came at the hands of Russell-Tyler-Ruthton, last season’s section champion, on May 18 on a walk-off. Additionally, MCC has made a statement through and through in the playoffs, going undefeated in the postseason and avoiding falling to the elimination bracket all together.

“I just think we all had the same goal in mind. We were all committed to the full process, and we played together,” Meyer said. “Not that we didn’t in previous years, but it just felt like we were ready to do it this year.”

After receiving a first-round bye, MCC cruised through the tournament with an 11-1 win over Minneota, and 8-0 win over Yellow Medicine East, then defeated Dawson-Boyd 4-0 in the semifinals to reach the title game, where the Rebels did much of the same.

“It means everything. This group was ready to do it. I think we just felt like we needed to get there, especially after the tough losses the past two years,” Meyer said. “We’ve been the one-seed, I think almost all four years of my career, so to finally get it done, it means a lot.”

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Murray County Central baseball team smiles after splashing head coach Paul Counter with water following the Section 3A championship win against Adrian/Ellsworth Thursday in Milroy.

In terms of achieving that success, the Rebels have worked to control both sides of the field throughout the entire season. Tentinger also noted that the team’s success has come down to just trusting one another on the field and at the plate each inning of every game.

A year of Rebel runs

The 2025-26 year has been one to remember for MCC athletics, which has made historic leaps and etched the Rebels’ name in record books.

A handful of the baseball players are also on the football team, which also won its fourth section championship in program history this year to advance to the state tournament. Notably, MCC reached the football state semifinals for the first time in over two decades, last in 2000.

“It’s a dream come true. I’ve said from the start of my senior year, it would be pretty awesome playing US Bank Stadium and Target Field. So, that’s my personal goal. I think that’d be pretty pretty fun,” Meyer said.

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Murray County Central baseball team celebrates Gabe Tentinger (back) after hitting a home run Thursday night in the Section 3A championship against Adrian/Ellsworth in Milroy.

Taking care of business

MCC got its offense started with back-to-back doubles through its first two batters to open the night.

Meyer lit the offensive fire in MCC’s first at-bat with a leadoff double on a line drive to left-center field, and charged home on Tristan Behrends’ RBI double right after.

The Rebels got bases loaded followed by Dugan Kluis and Schneider walks, and Behrends tagged and ran on a sacrifice fly from Carson Lewis to give MCC an early two-run edge before A/E grabbed the final out.

Schneider was also intentionally walked twice.

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Murray County baseball team lifts up the Section 3A trophy after defeating Adrian/Ellsworth 7-0 Thursday night in Milroy.

Tentinger kept the energy going in the following frame after seeing one pitch then drilling the second over the left-field fence for a leadoff single home run, and was met by the entire dugout at home plate.

“I knew it was gone right away. I started doing my trot thing, and [assistant coach James] Wager yelled at me,” Tentinger said, laughing. “It felt great. I’m in kind of a slump, so that felt great.”

Meyer and Behrends also did the exact same in the fifth inning as well, each hitting back-to-back doubles with Meyer scoring off Behrends’ hit to build a 7-0 lead.

“I just think that’s what we’ve tried to do all year. We came ready to play, we hit the ball well, and hitting is contagious,” Meyer said. “We came out hitting well, and I think it just flows through the whole team.”

In the third, Meyer connected for a two-run RBI double to score both Larson and Tentinger on two outs, both of who walked. Kluis also took advantage of an A/E error in the fourth when attempting to steal second, and ran all the way home to score on the overthrow.

To officially clinch the title, MCC wrapped the night up in the top of the seventh with a final trio of outs when Lewis fielded a ground out, Tentinger caught a fly ball in right field and Schneider struck out the final batter.

“[We were] backing up everything. We all made the plays with us behind Krew, so it was nice to let him throw the ball and get on with the day,” Larson said.

The Rebels finished with eight hits and no errors to A/E’s three hits and two errors.

“They stayed together, they stayed hungry, they wanted it, and it’s the ultimate goal,” Counter said. “They just played their best at the right times and found a way to get it done.”

Up next

MCC now moves to 21-1 on the season, and will await state-tournament seeding in the coming days.

The Class A state quarterfinals begin on Thursday at Joe Faber Field in St. Cloud. The top overall seed gets a first-round bye into the semifinals on Friday.

The semifinals, consolation and third-place game all take place Friday in St. Cloud, and championship game is slated for Monday, June 15, at Target Field.

BOX SCORE

BATTING

T. Meyer: 3-4, 3 2 B, 2R, 2 RBI; T. Behrends: 2-3, R, 2RBI, BB; D. Kluis: 1-2, R, 2 BB; K. Schneider: 0-1, 3 BB; C. Lewis: 1-3; C. Veldhuisen: 1-4; D. Larson: 1-3, BB; G. Tentinger: 1-3, 2 R, RBI, BB.

PITCHING

K. Schneider: 7 IP, 7 SO, 3 H, 3 BB.

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Murray County Central baseball dugout smiles while running out to meet Gabe Tentinger at home plate after he hit a home run in the Section 3A championship against Adrian/Ellsworth Thursday in Milroy.

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Murray County Central baseball team smiles while going to line up for the trophy presentation following the Section 3A championship win against Adrian/Ellsworth Thursday in Milroy.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Murray County Central head coach Paul Counter places a first-place medal around Cayden Veldhuisen after winning the Section 3A championship on Thursday in Milroy. All members of the team received medals.

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Murray County Central baseball team stands with their Section 3A championship trophy Thursday night in Milroy.