Staff photo by Steve Muscatello Mallory Helget (7) starts her windup from the circle in the Knights’ 2A playoff game with Sleepy Eye on Thursday at Caswell Park in North Mankato. The Knights went on to win 9-5 and will meet New Ulm Cathedral on Friday at Caswell Park. They must win twice in order to advance to state next week.

NORTH MANKATO — Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s won both of its games on Thursday in the Section 2A softball tournament and will face New Ulm Cathedral at 5 p.m. on Friday to determine which team goes to the state softball tournament.

The Knights must defeat Cathedral twice on Friday to advance to state. If Cathedral wins Game 1, it will advance to state.

Sleepy Eye’s Courtney Dittenbenner cracked a double down the left field line in the top of the first inning. Karlie Ries then smashed the ball over the left-field fence to give the Indians an early 2-0 lead.

Cassie Heinrichs got a double in the bottom of the second for the Knights. She advanced to second base and scored on an Indian wild pitch.

St. Marys’ Leah Weiss hit a single to right field. Sara Zinniel belted a triple to right field which scored Weiss to tie the game at 2-apiece. Dani Weiss’s single brought Zinniel in to give the Knights a 3-2 lead after two innings.

Jody Hansen hit a leadoff solo home run to center field in the bottom of the third for a Knights 4-2 advantage.

Sleepy Eye came back with two runs in the top of the fourth to tie the game. Hannah Schroepfer drew a walk and Emma Fischer came in as a pinch runner. Leslie Flores’s double to right field scored Fischer. McKenna Strong’s hit scored Flores for a 4-4 tie in the fourth inning.

Dani Weiss got a double to lead off the fifth inning. Weiss scored on an out with a Sleepy Eye miscue to get the lead back for the Knights at 5-4. Hansen reached on an infield hit. She scored on Ali Beltz’s triple. Beltz scored on an error making it 7-4 St. Mary’s.

Sleepy Eye’s Schroepfer cracked a homerun to left-center field, cutting into the Knights’ lead. It was 7-5 in the sixth inning.

Dani Weiss then hit another single for the Knights in the bottom of the sixth inning. She stole second and third base. Hansen walked. Belt’s triple scored Weiss and Hansen for the 9-5 final for the Knights.

Helget earned the win in Game 2. Heinrichs had a double, Zinniel added a triple and Dani Weiss added a double with two singles and a stolen base. Hansen had a homerun with two RBIs and Beltz had two triples and an RBI for St. Mary’s.

Dittbenner had a double and a single, Ries added a home run with two RBIs, Flores had a double with an RBI and Schroepfer had a homerun.

Earlier, the Knights crushed Cleveland 11-4. Leah Weiss earned the win, going seven innings, giving up four runs on three hits, three walks, hitting one and striking out five.

Hansen was 3 for 4 with a triple and two runs scored. Emily Stevens added a double, while Ali Beltz had a double with two runs scored. Alexa Owens went 2 for 4 with a double, a single and a run scored.