With the win, Springfield advances to play top-seeded Sleepy Eye in the championship game Saturday and clinches a spot in the Southwest Sub-State Tournament.

“We’re where we want to be,” Springfield head coach Henry Scheitel said. “We played Truman a couple of times earlier in the year and we 10-runned them both times, so we kind of knew what to expect. We saved our pitching for tomorrow against Sleepy Eye, and I think we’re going to need it. We’re sitting where we want to be, and we need to come ready to play tomorrow.

Springfield pitcher Noah Mueller gave up one run in the first inning, but blanked Truman the rest of the way, striking out three and allowing just two hits.

“All year we’ve played pretty good defense,” Scheitel said. “We haven’t hit the ball all that well, but we throw strikes and we play good defense, and that’s how we win games.”

Staff photo by Ari Selvey Springfield Legion’s Kadyn Anderson during a Southwest-East Sub-Sub-State Legion Baseball Tournament game against Truman Friday at Sleepy Eye Ballpark.

At the plate for Springfield, Eli Heglund was 2 for 3 with an RBI and two runs scored, while Brecken Heiling was 1 for 3 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Max Moriarty added two RBIs, and Eli Streich had a hit, an RBI and two runs scored.

Truman needed just one hit to score its run in the first inning, with Griffen Studer doubling then going to second on a bunt before a sacrifice fly brought him home. Springfield was unable to match the score in the bottom of the inning, but after going 1-2-3 defensively, Springfield recorded an eight-run second inning. A balk brought home Leo Hovland to open the scoring, then a single by Eli Heglund and a walk by Kadyn Anderson loaded the bases. Heiling and Streich were both hit by pitches to collect RBIs, and a sacrifice fly by Max Moriarty made it a 4-1 game. A wild pitch brought home Heiling, then three consecutive runs were scored as Streich, Adiel Trevino and Aiden Moriarty all beat fielder’s choices home for an 8-1 lead.

Springfield added one more run in the third as a single from Trevino brought home Streich. In the fourth inning, A double by Heiling scored Heglund, Anderson came home on a wild pitch, and Max Moriarty had one more sacrifice fly to make it a 12-1 game. Springfield held Truman scoreless in the bottom of the inning to complete the five-inning win.

Springfield (9-3) now plays Sleepy Eye in the sub-sub-state championship game to determine the top seed of the Southwest Sub-State Tournament. The loser will be the second seed in the tournament. The game begins at 1 p.m. at Sleepy Eye Ballpark.