A LEGISLATIVE COMMEMORATION, commending the Rapid City Babe Ruth 14U Braves baseball team for being the first South Dakota team to reach the Babe Ruth World Series.

WHEREAS, the Rapid City Babe Ruth 14U Braves baseball team, consisting of team members Ian Beer, Mason Brooks, Jackson Dial, Luke Hanzlik, Tyler Henstein, Josef Meehan, Colton Morlang, Blake Olmsted, Brody Thompson, Will Waddell, and Ethan Wilson, bat-boy Eli Harming, and coaching staff Molloy Dial, Bryan Olmsted, Darrick Brooks, and Casey Thompson, had an outstanding regular season record of 18-1 in 2021; and

WHEREAS, the Rapid City Braves competed in the Midwest Plains Regional Tournament in Garden City, Kansas, where they rallied from two early losses to beat West Fargo, North Dakota, in the championship game to win the tournament, finishing with a tournament record of 4-2. Team members Jackson Dial, Luke Hanzlik, and Brody Thompson were voted to the Midwest Plains Regional All-Tournament Team; and

WHEREAS, by winning the Midwest Plains Regional Championship, the Rapid City Braves qualified to represent South Dakota and the Midwest Plains Region in the Babe Ruth 14-year-old World Series, which was held in August 2021 in Ottumwa, Iowa;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT COMMEMORATED, by the Ninety-Seventh Legislature of the State of South Dakota, that the Rapid City Babe Ruth 14U Braves baseball team be commended for its remarkable 2021 season, and for being the first South Dakota team to reach the Babe Ruth World Series.