Staff photo by Ari Selvey Sleepy Eye Junior Legion’s Jaxon Saenz (1) high-fives Jacob Fulmer (5) after scoring during a Southwest Sub-State Junior Legion Baseball Tournament game against Springfield Monday at Riverside Park in Springfield.

SPRINGFIELD — It had to wait until the fifth inning to see any runs scored, but the DII Southwest Sub-State Junior Legion Tournament game between Sleepy Eye and Springfield saw nine runs scored in the final three innings as Sleepy Eye came up with the 5-4 win.

With the win, Sleepy Eye forces a second finals game, which will be played at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Sleepy Eye Ballpark. The winner will go on to the DII Junior Legion State Tournament in Hayfield.

“It was a little tighter than we needed it to be at the end, but we pulled it out,” Sleepy Eye head coach Brandon Streich said.

Springfield’s Madden Lendt and Sleepy Eye’s Landry Folkens both had strong starts on the mounds, with just five total hits being allowed across the first four frames. However, both offenses got rolling late as the runs came pouring in.

“Madden’s a good pitcher,” coach Streich said. “We felt we had a little bit of an advantage when he went to the stretch with some base runners. Called a hit-and-run there, and Jaxon [Saenz] poked it through, and that gave us a bit of momentum. We loaded the bases, and then Carsno [Uecker] does what Carson does and comes up with a big base hit. Three runs scored, and that was the ball game really, gave us some momentum and confidence to plow through the rest of it.”

Folkens earned the win for Sleepy Eye, striking out eight and allowing three earned runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings. At the plate, Uecker was 2 for 3 with three RBIs, while Eric Lozano had a hit and an RBI. Derrick Wales had a hit, an RBI and a run scored, while Saenz and Chase Zufall each had a hit and a run scored.

Lendt took the loss for Springfield, striking out eight while allowing five runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings. At the plate, Lendt was 2 for 4 with two RBIs and a run scored, while Eli Heglund had a hit and an RBI. Kadyn Anderson was 2 for 4, and Ely Streich had a hit and a run scored.

After Wales drew a walk, Saenz singled and Adam Braulick drew another walk to load the bases in the fifth, Uecker got the scoring going as he cleared the bases with a single, putting Sleepy Eye up 3-0. Sleepy Eye increased the lead to 5-0 as singles from Lozano and Wales scored Folkens and Zufall in the top of the sixth.

Springfield struck back in the bottom of the sixth with a four-run inning. Adiel Trevino was hit by a pitch, Ely Streich singled and Elisandro Trevino drew a walk to load the bases Adiel Trevino scored on a wild pitch, then Lendt brought home the other two runners with a single. Heglund drew a walk with bases loaded again to cut the lead to 5-4. Adiel Trevino went up to bat again and nearly took the lead with a ground ball hit on the third base line, but it was called just foul, and a groundout ended the inning with the Sleepy Eye lead intact.

While Sleepy Eye didn’t add any more runs, the defense shut things down in the bottom of the seventh. A double play on two runners caught in run downs ended the game.

Coach Streich said the team will have to continue to bring its best in the second game on Tuesday.

“They’re a very good team, they’re well coached and they have a lot of good athletes,” he said. “It’s a rivalry game. Both playoff games against these guys have been one-run games. They’re going to bring their best, we’re going to bring our best, and its everything a championship game should be.”