With guile, Mount Vernon's ace Luke Tiesler propels Mustangs to new territory in Class B tourney
Aug. 9—MITCHELL — Luke Tiesler didn't need to prove himself as an ace pitcher to the Mount Vernon Mustangs.
But his effort in the second round of the South Dakota Class B state amateur baseball tournament did so for everyone else looking on.
Tiesler threw a complete-game four-hitter against Milbank and earned a win against the Firechiefs' left-handed dynamo Dom Boerger, who himself pumped home 17 strikeouts but took a hard-luck loss. The right-handed Tiesler had four strikeouts but allowed only two runs in a 3-2 win.
"He just competes," Mount Vernon manager Deric Denning said of Tiesler. "He lifts the team up and he makes them compete at another level. He battles his butt off."
It was a continuation of what Tiesler has done all season for the Mustangs. In his seventh start and ninth pitching appearance of the season, Tiesler has now thrown 58 2/3 innings with only 16 runs allowed and 35 strikeouts, good for an earned-run average of 2.45. It was a mix of fastball variations and off-speed pitches that did the trick for Mount Vernon (12-11), which now plays in the state quarterfinal round on Thursday against Garretson.
"I throw a couple of different fastballs and if I can get my curveball, slider working and locating it the way I want to, I'm going to be in good shape," Tiesler said.
In particular, Tiesler throws a fastball with some movement, which increases the difficulty for opposing hitters to square up pitches at the plate.
"I'm not that overpowering and I'm probably not going to strike a bunch of guys out in a game," he said. "I just want to go and throw strikes and do what I can for my side. I enjoy throwing and when I'm able to do it, I want to be out there for as long as I possibly can."
The Adrian, Minnesota, native has been a member of the Mustangs since 2018, talked into joining the team by a friend after a few years away from competitive baseball. He's since moved to the small town of Mount Vernon with his family and works in Mitchell.
Giving all he has on the mound is something Tiesler has always done. In his 2009 high school season for the Adrian Vikings, he threw 11 complete games, which is among the best all-time for a Minnesota high school pitcher for a season.
Tiesler said he's enjoyed his amateur baseball experience, made better by the victories in the state tournament, which now has the Mustangs in the state quarterfinals for the first time in their current iteration. (The Mount Vernon Cardinals had the town's last quarterfinal appearance in 1998.)
"It's awesome," Tiesler said. "It's a crowd like you haven't seen before and everyone comes out and has a great time. And if you get a nail-biter like we did, that's fun to watch as well."
Entering Tuesday, four of the Sunshine League's teams still remained in the tournament, with the only elimination coming at the hands of each other as Alexandria topped Platte. The Mustangs are eager to stay in the championship picture for as long as possible.
"We have a lot of good competitors on this team and they play hard for each other. It feels pretty good to be in the mix," Denning said.
