With the First Nite/Gopher League playoffs in the books, the Region 13C playoffs are set to begin today. The field consists of Fairmont, Jackson, Hadley, Milroy, Luverne, Lakefield, Pipestone, and Windom, with all four best-of-three series kicking off today.
The defending Region 13C champions and top-seeded Hadley Buttermakers will play at No. 8 Lakefield today at 7:30. Hadley plays the first game on the road because it doesn’t have lights at the ballfield and can’t host night games. Games 2 and 3 will be in Hadley on Saturday and Sunday with both starting at 2 p.m. The Buttermakers earned a bye into the regional tournament by winning the Gopher League with a 15-4 record. The Horned Frogs were 10-9 in the regular season, and earned their way into the playoffs by sweeping the Tracy Express in a best-of-three series 9-3 and 9-4.
The No. 2 Pipestone A’s host the No. 2 Windom Pirates today at 7:30. Game 2 will be at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.in Windom, and Game 3 -- if necessary --is set for 2 p.m. on Sunday back at Pipestone. The A’s earned their way into the Region 13C playoffs by sweeping Worthington 11-0 in Game 1 and 3-2 in a 13-inning thriller in the second game. Pipestone was 15-4 in the regular season. Meanwhile, Windom swept Ruthton 8-4 and 13-0, and was 12-7 in regular season play.
The third-seeded Fairmont Martins host No. 6 Jackson today at 7:30, with the second game slated for 7:30 p.m. on Friday in Jackson, and Game 3 for 2 p.m. on Sunday in Fairmont if necessary. Fairmont and Jackson each earned byes into the regional tournament. The Martins skipped the First Nite/Gopher playoffs by virtue of a First Nite regular season championship with a 13-5 record. The Bulls got the bye with the second-best record in the First Nite League (12-7) due to the Adrian A’s being ineligible to compete in the playoffs.
No. 4 Luverne hosts the No. 5 Milroy Irish today at 7:30 p.m. Game 2 is 7:30 p.m. on Friday in Milroy, and Game 3 is at 5 p.m. Sunday at Luverne if necessary. The Redbirds were third in the Gopher League with a 14-5 regular season. They defeated Martin County by scores of 10-6 and 13-3 to advance to the regional playoffs. Milroy defeated Heron Lake 10-4 and 5-3 and had a regular season record of 13-6.
