Spartans Top Cardinals To Advance In Section Playoffs

WILLMAR -- The ROCORI Spartans continued play in the Section 8-3A Playoffs on Thursday, June 2, taking on the Willmar Cardinals in the section tournament in a win-or-go-home contest.

The third-seeded Spartans hit the road to face the top-seeded Cardinals at Baker Field, a game which saw ROCORI come out on top 7-5 to advance in the section tournament.

In the game, the Spartans kicked off scoring with three runs in the top of the first inning to get in front early. After the Cardinals evened the game up at 3-3 entering the fifth inning, ROCORI broke the game open with three runs in the fifth and one more in the sixth while holding off Willmar to grab the victory.

At the plate, Brady Blattner went 2-for-4 with a home run, one RBI and two runs scored, while Brady Schafer went 3-for-3 with one RBI, Joel Sowada went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and Evan Acheson went 2-for-4 to lead the Spartans offense. Peyton Randall added one hit and one run scored and Cole Fuchs drove in two runs with one hit for ROCORI.

Fuchs started the game on the mound for the Spartans, pitching the first five innings while giving up just two hits and four earned runs while striking out five. Tyler Lardy threw the final two innings in relief, giving up two hits and one run with two strikeouts.

With the win, ROCORI advances in the Section 8-3A Playoffs and will return to action at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 4. All remaining games in the section tournament will be played at the St. Cloud MAC, at either Joe Faber Field or Dick Putz Field.