The Metros dominated in every facet of the game and TJ Hjelmstad tossed his first career no-hitter in the finale as Minot ended the regular season with some momentum following 6-1 and 10-0 victories over Williston on Friday at Jack Hoeven Park to earn the sweep.

“I texted the guys last night after figuring out we clinched the two seed and it was more so ‘Hey, let’s just start our playoff run a little bit early,'” Minot coach Craig Schmich said. “Come out here with a little bit of energy, a little bit of fight. I know it’s games 38 and 39 for us, but the biggest thing for us is just kind of showing up and being ready to go and getting this postseason started a little early.”

Schmich couldn’t ask for a better performance from his pitching staff. Brody Johnson got the starting nod in the opener and pitched all seven innings, allowing just an unearned run on two hits, striking out eight and walking three. Johnson surrendered his only run of the game as the result of a dropped third strike, which allowed Carson Webber to reach base safely before ultimately coming around to score on a single by Eithan Gillispie in the fourth.

Despite Johnson’s gem on the mound, he was outdueled by his own teammate in the ensuing game. Hjelmstad shook off a shaky start after walking the first two batters he faced to retire 18 of the final 19 batters he faced to secure his no-hitter. A hit-by-pitch in the fourth was the only other baserunner the Oilers (9-24) would have in the contest. Hjelmstad also struck out eight, but did it over six innings in a mercy-rule shortened game.

Mike Kraft/MDN Minot’s Jace Price rips an RBI single to center during the third inning of a doubleheader against Williston on Friday at Jack Hoeven Park.

“A lot of offspeed coming into today,” Hjelmstad said. “My fastball was working, the curveball was working and it was a lot of fun.”

While dominant, Hjelmstad appeared to be one of the few people in the park – including his own players and coaches – that had any idea he was on the cusp of a no-hitter. But the Minot pitcher said it wasn’t in the back of his head at all.

While he may not have known in real time of his pitcher’s accomplishment, Schmich was still impressed by the performances of both of his hurlers.

“The guys came out and Brody threw a great game, gave up one run and then TJ comes out and throws a no-hitter that I didn’t even know that he did,” Schmich said. “Great pitching all around and then hitters came around in the second game, so that was great to see. For them they were both getting ahead early and being able to work off of that, throwing their curveballs for strikes and just getting ahead and it was fun to watch. Our defense made some good plays behind them, so I think that’s the biggest recipe for us as I’ve told them all season that pitching and defense don’t slump very often, it’s the bats that kind of do, so if they can keep it going we should have a good run here.”

The bats didn’t slump, particularly in the second game, where the Metros put up 10 hits. Remington Anderson started the offense in the first with an RBI single to plate Brock Thompson.

The Metros (24-15) would add to their lead in the form of four runs in the third and three in the fourth to build an 8-0 advantage. Owen Sundahl delivered a two-run single with the bases loaded in the third inning following a hit by Jace Price to drive in Gavin King.

Sundahl collected his second RBI of the contest in the next inning on a sacrifice fly to center, allowing Anderson to touch home for the second time in as many innings.

“We’re definitely trying to win still,” Sundahl said. “We had the two seed clinched, but we wanted to play hard and try to get us going for tournament time.”

The bench provided a spark in the sixth and allowed the Metros to go home a bit early. Kayden Danielson led off the frame with a double to deep left and came around to score on an RBI single by Cole Deaver. But then it was a familiar face that ended the game as Sundahl capped off a 3-for-3 night with a shot down the left-field line to bring across the game-ending run.

“I knew the last two weeks are going to be a bit of a grind for us, but if we could build some good baseball and build off of that and build some momentum going into the postseason, we would be in a good spot,” Schmich said. “I’m excited to see where we go next week.”

The opener went the distance, but the Metros still managed eight hits, led by King’s 3-for-4 performance in which he doubled, drove in two runs and scored once. Anderson also finished with multiple hits, going 2-or-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored.

The Metros took a 1-0 lead in the second on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Brady Vigested and added two more in the third with doubles by King and Levi Balas. After the Oilers scored their only run of the doubleheader in the fourth, the Metros countered with one of their own in the bottom half as well as one more in the fifth and another in the sixth. After going down in order to start the game, Minot plated at least one run in its final five innings at the plate.

Ending the regular season on such a high note was a priority for the Metros.

“That’s really important for us,” Hjelmstad said. “Some people were saying that it’s not important, but every game is important.”

Now the real postseason begins Wednesday with the first round of the West Region tournament in Bismarck. The Metros – representing the No. 2 seed – will need to win at least two games in three attempts to advance to the state tournament. Minot will play No. 7 seed Watford City in the opener.