Sleepy Eye Jr. Legion falls in state opener
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PARKERS PRAIRIE -- Sleepy Eye Junior Legion came up just short during the opening round of the DII Junior Legion Baseball State Tournament on Thursday, falling to Parkers Prairie 3-2.
Sleepy Eye took an initial 1-0 lead, but Parkers Prairie took a 3-1 lead after the fifth. Sleepy Eye scored one run in the sixth and had runners on third with two outs in both the sixth and seventh innings, but were unable to go the extra 90 feet to fall to the consolation bracket.
Landry Folkens took the loss for Sleepy Eye, striking out nine and allowing three runs, one earned, on four hits in 5 2/3 innings. At the plate, Merrick Mathiowetz was 2 for 3 with an RBI and a run scored, while Karter Haala had a hit and a run scored. Folkens had the only other hit for Sleepy Eye.
Neither team scored in the first three frames of the game as defense dominated early. Haala hit a leadoff double in the top of the fourth inning, then was bunted over to third by Adam Braulick. Mathiowetz stepped up and hit a ground ball single between third base and the shortstop to bring Haala home and score the first run of the game. Parkers Prairies's Eli Holmquist tied the game in the bottom of the inning with a solo home run down the left field line. Eric Lozano reached on an error in the fifth, then advanced two bases, one on a groundout and another on an errant pickoff attempt, to land at third base, but Sleepy Eye was unable to bring him home in the next two batters, keeping the game tied. Parkers Prairie broke the tie in the bottom of the fifth, scoring two runs to go up 3-1. Mathiowetz got one run back in the sixth inning, taking home on an errant throwdown to second base to make it a 3-2 game. Parkers Prairie loaded up the bases in the bottom of the sixth, but Wales, who came in to pitch during the inning, ended the threat with a strikeout. Lozano lead off the top of the seventh for Sleepy Eye and got on base on a hard hit ball that ended in an error, then was bunted over to second by Jalen Brandl and to third by Derick Wales but Sleepy Eye was once again unable to capitalize as Parkers Prairie ended the game with a flyout.
Sleepy Eye now faces the loser of a game between Caledonia and Norwood on Saturday at 12 p.m. in Parkers Prairie.