Caleb Langager slides safely into third base during BE/W’s 6-3 loss to St. James.

Blue Earth/Winnebago and  St. James had hoped to be meeting for the American Legion Sub-Sub-State District C Tournament championship. But, following opening-round losses by each team, they ended up meeting in an elimination game simply fighting to stay alive in the playoffs. Unfortunately for BE/W, it was St. James who survived with a 6-3 victory over BE/W.

BE/W and St. James came into the playoffs as the top-two seeded teams but when Minnesota Lake beat BE/W and Wells defeated St. James, the path to advancing to the Southwest Sub-State playoffs became much more difficult.

Both teams staved off elimination by winning their second games. BE/W defeated Welcome/Sherburn while St. James took care of business against Truman.

Those wins meant the two teams had to face each other in an elimination game on Saturday, July 8, at Veterans Field in Blue Earth.

St. James took the early lead with three runs in the top of the first inning.

Pitcher Connor Jones of St. James kept BE/W off of the scoreboard until the bottom of the fifth inning when the home team scored three times with two outs to tie the game at 3-3.

Colton Hubly walked with one out in the fifth inning to give BE/W a base runner. A walk to Peyton O’Hara put runners on first and second base.

St. James recorded their second out of the inning on a pop out to center field.

Soren Fering’s double to the center-field wall drove in Hubly and Carter Rosenau, who was a courtesy runner for O’Hara.

BE/W needed one more hit to tie the game and they got it when Caleb Langager laced a line-drive single to center field to bring home Fering and tie the game 3-3. Langager stole second base and went to third on an error but was stranded there when St. James recorded the third out.

Neither team scored in the sixth inning but St. James produced two singles and two doubles in the top of the seventh inning to take a 6-3 lead. BE/W was unable to score in the bottom of the inning and was eliminated from the playoffs.

St. James ended up advancing as the No. 1-seed from District C and was set to face the third-seeded team from District A,Windom, on July 13. Also on July 13, Minnesota Lake, the No. 2-seeded team from District C, played the No. 1-seed from District B, Sleepy Eye. Wells also qualified for the next round as the No. 3- seed out of District C. They were defeated 7-0 by Luverne, the No. 1-seed from District A.