The Panthers baseball team could have taken Thursday’s state quarterfinal lightly. Brainerd, a team that hadn’t beaten a ranked baseball team all season wasn’t expected to come close to beating Lakeville North. With two teams on opposite sides of the spectrum, the Brainerd Warriors could have caught the Panthers sleeping, ultimately ending North's season.

But, the outcome was quite the opposite.

Due to the 10-run mercy rule, the Lakeville North Panther baseball team defeated the Warriors 10-0 in six innings at Midway Stadium in the first round of the state tournament.

Lakeville North took control early and didn’t let up once they gained a lead. To Panther head coach Tony Market, the formula for taking control early was simple.

“Getting confidence at the plate, that’s number one,” Market said. “If you can swing the bat and score some runs, then everyone’s nerves can kind of calm down a little bit.”

One player who had his nerves calmed from the start was ace pitcher Dalton Lehnen. In the first inning, Lehnen retired the side; pitching his first three of 12 total strikeouts on the morning. By the time he had pitched his twelfth strikeout in the fifth inning, Lehnen had 12 out of the 15 outs.

Lehnen showed in the game against Brainerd why he is up for the Mr. Baseball award. But, in the loss to Bloomington Jefferson in sections, his play was the complete opposite.

“I was a thrower in that game, not a pitcher,” Lehnen said of his play vs. Jefferson. “Coming into today I knew I had to pitch a pretty good game because I had no idea about Brainerd. If (Brainerd) was good or bad; I had no idea what was going on. I really had to focus and become a pitcher today.“

As Lehnen continued to shut down the Warriors, the Panthers bats dominated the game as well.

In three Déjà vu moments, Lehnen went to the plate with the bases loaded and each time A.J. Sayer, Matt Arnold and Angelo Altavilla were on base. Twice, Lehnen hit the ball to deep center for the sacrificial fly and Sayer tagged up for the score.

But the underrated spark for the Lakeville North bats wasn’t Lehnen. Instead, second baseman Matt Arnold led the way. Arnold went three-for-three Thursday with two singles and a double just inside fair territory.

“Just the little things,” Arnold said were the key to his strong at bats Thursday. “I’ve been working with (batting coach Mark) Zeise a bunch. He’s been working with me for a long time and finally came through with a big day.”

The Panthers move on to the semifinal round where they will play Mounds View. And as long as the team takes the same mentality toward the state tournament as Lehnen, North could very well end up in the state title game.

"Its the state tournament so you always get a little more adrenaline," Lehnen said. "Baseball isn't really a sport that you can get amped up like football. So you've got to be able to stay calm and when that adrenalin comes into you, control it."