The Crofton Bluejays ended the 2023 season on a high note, playing well into the state tourney; and next year they will also have a new manager.
The Bluejays ended their regular season campaign in 2023 with a pair of losses on July 6 against the Class A Yankton Tappers and then July 9 versus the South Central League last place team Menno.
But it was a whole new season once the District 6B tourney started in Crofton, and the Jays continued a successful campaign into the postseason winning their first round game of the South Dakota State Amateur Baseball tournament, beating Hartford-Humboldt Gamecocks. They dropped a second round game to Larchwood that finally sent them home.
To get to that point, Crofton beat Wynot, Lesterville and Tabor in the District 6B tourney and punched their ticket to the state tourney as District champs for the third time in four years. The regular season started slow for the Jays, but they definitely picked up steam when it counted.
“We had a strong finish to the year and it was fun to be playing our best ball during the postseason play,” says Jays manager, Ben Hegge. “We ran into a bit of a buzz saw in a talented Larchwood team,” he says, “but overall, the 2023 season was a big step in the right direction.”
Next season, there will be some changes for the Bluejays. After several years at the helm, Hegge will be handing over the manager’s keys to another veteran Jays player, Colton Schieffer, and Hegge will move to assistant manager.
“Colton is going to be manager for the 2024 season and I’ll move to an assistant,” Hegge says. “Colton puts in a lot of time and dedication to our team and will do a great job.”