A nightmarish Monday night may stay with the Highland Huskies for a long time.

In a way, that’s what Huskies baseball head coach Seth Milledge is hoping for.

Highland’s season ended with a 4-1 loss in the first round of the Class 1A District 6 tournament to a North Cedar that had won just once in 20 games. The loss spoiled a possible second-round matchup against rival Hillcrest Academy.

“This has to be something that really drives us moving forward,” Milledge said. “I’m not saying I’m embarrassed by our efforts because we were right there. We didn’t put our best foot forward tonight. But this has to be something like it really does drive you moving you forward in your development in this game.”

Highland finished its season with a 16-9 record.

On this night, they ran into a North Cedar pitcher who was simply overpowering. Tadan Lange struck out 10 and allowed just two hits in six innings. He was replaced in the seventh inning after the Huskies got their first two batters on base.

“We didn’t hit the ball well tonight. He pitched very well,” Milledge said. “Their pitcher was on his stuff tonight and pitched a very good game. I don’t know if he does that every time against us, but it was his night tonight. Hats off to him, for sure.”

The Knights (2-19) had lost 18 straight games and hadn’t won since May 24, the opening day of the season, when Lange got the win in a 10-5 victory over Bellevue. But North Cedar had a different road to take into the Class 1A tournament. The Knights play in the River Valley Conference, which consists of mostly 2A schools, including River Valley South champion Mid-Prairie.

“Here’s the thing about them: They play in 2A competition,” Milledge said. “They play in a very good River Valley Conference. They go play Cascade, Camanche, Wilton, Regina, Mid-Prairie every night. They know we’re a solid team. Coach said that. He goes, ‘You’re a solid team.’ We are. We had a bad night. It’s the wrong time of year to have a bad night.”

The Knights only had four hits and took advantage of walks, a hit batter and a passed ball to push across two runs in the first inning against Highland starting pitcher Connor Grinstead. A two-run single by Tyler Jackson in the fifth inning gave North Cedar a 4-0 lead.

After loading the bases with none out in the seventh inning, the Huskies scored their only run on a ground-out by Luke Miller. The game, and season ended, on a ground-out to Lange, now playing at third base.

“We didn’t have our best stuff. That happens sometimes. That’s baseball,” Milledge said. “It’s a fickle game and it is a game that will humble you really quickly if you’re not here.”

The Huskies met in a huddle for an extended time after the game finished, but that’s probably because this is a team with a bright future in 2022. The team is packed with underclassmen; Bryce Thompson was the only senior.

“I hope this burns a little bit. I hope this lights a fire in your belly,” Milledge said he told the team. “We’ve got a good team coming back. I fully expect us to be a competitive team. I really expected us to be in a substate game this year. I really truly did.”