BLOOMINGTON — The New Ulm Junior Legion Gold fell 5-3 to the Excelsior Junior Legion Blue on Saturday to finish as consolation runners-up in the DI Junior Legion Baseball State Tournament.

New Ulm defeated Bloomington 4-3 earlier on Saturday to earn a spot in the consolation finals.

New Ulm finishes the season 24-5.

New Ulm 4, Bloomington 3

Candon Briggs got the start on the mound and win, going 5 2/3 innings and allowing five hits and two walks for two earned runs while striking out five. Collin Forstner pitched 1 1/3 innings in relief for New Ulm, allowing two hits and a walk for one earned run while striking out one.

Levi Hopp led the Junior Gold bats, going 2 for 3, while Mitchell Hopp was 1 for 3 with two RBIs and Tanner Backer was 1 for 3 with an RBI.

Backer’s hit, a single in the third, went into left to score the first run of the game and give the Junior Gold the early 1-0 lead. Mitchell Hopp’s hit, a line-drive single into center, made it a 3-0 game in the fourth.

Bloomington got a run back in the fourth on a groundout by Hunter Gess, but New Ulm got the run back in the fifth on an error that allowed Briggs to reach and Backer to score. Bloomington got another run in the sixth and one in the seventh, but a flyout and lineout ended the game.

Maxwell Meier was 2 for 3 to lead the Bloomington bats, while Jack Frein was 2 for 4 with an RBI and Jack Latoure was 2 for 4.

Excelsior 5, New Ulm 3

Trailing by five after a three-run fourth inning, the Junior Gold made a late push to make things interesting with a three-run seventh inning that started with a leadoff walk to Briggs. A single by Lane Ruch put two on. A strikeout brought Landon Kapolczinski to the plate, who walked to load the bases for Alex Portner.

After a wild pitch scored Briggs, Portner grounded out to score Ruch and put Kapolczinski on third. Hunter Larson then singled in another run to make it a 5-3 game. Backer walked to keep the pressure on, and an error allowed Evan Blekestad to take first and load the bases.

Excelsior pitcher Ricky Hillard was able to get a strikeout, though, to end New Ulm’s threat and season.

Josh Forstner got the start on the mound for New Ulm and went six innings, allowing eight hits and one walk for five runs, four earned, while striking out six. Larson, Ruch and Blekestad each had one of New Ulm’s three hits in the game.

Andrew Lawson got the win in six innings for Excelsior, allowing one hit and three walks for no runs while striking out six. Nolan Carr was 3 for 3 to lead for Excelsior at the plate, while Hillard was 2 for 2 with two RBIs and Eli Simmons was 2 for 3.