The 3A baseball tournament begins today at 11 a.m. with games in four sites: Granite Falls, Prinsburg, Ruthton and Slayton. With plenty of action going on from 11 a.m. through the afternoon, here are the top players to watch in each region of the first day of the tournament.

No. 1N YME

The Yellow Medicine East baseball team has plenty of hitting to go around. They have three players with an OPS over 1.000 and a batting average over .400. During the course of the Sting’s 12-game win streak, they were held to fewer than five runs just twice. The key to success will be to limit their opponents’ scoring opportunities. Luckily for the Sting, Bryce Sneller has shown an aptitude for getting things done on the mound and at the plate.

Among players with at least 10 innings pitched on the season, Bryce Sneller has the lowest earned run average on the Sting. Over 36 1/3 innings, he’s posted an ERA of 1.16. Not only is he not allowing runs, but he’s also hardly letting runners reach base; he’s allowing just .908 walks and hits per inning pitched. He’s also logged 64 strikeouts so far this season.

His stats aren’t just empty numbers, either. His 4-1 record as a starting pitcher is second to Drew Almich’s 5-1. While the Sting isn’t likely to face high-octane offenses in the first two rounds of the playoffs, Sneller’s pitching will be a deciding factor if the Sting want to make a run for the section championship.

On the offensive end, Sneller has a 1.407 OPS at the time of print. Over 40 at-bats, he’s hit six doubles, a triple and the Sting’s only home run. His ability to put the ball in play and get extra-base hits helps the Sting’s offense, but with Cody Dahlager’s 1.263 OPS and Andrew Flaten sitting at 1.005, his defensive contributions may still be more important to Yellow Medicine East’s success.

The top-seeded Sting will face No. 8 Canby in Granite Falls to open the 3A tournament at 11 a.m. today. The winner of that game will play again at 3:30 p.m. against the winner of No. 4 Lac qui Parle Valley and No. 5 Lakeview.

No. 1S RTR

When Cody Wichmann starts on the mound for Russell-Tyler-Ruthton, the question isn’t how many runs he’ll allow, but rather, will he allow any runs? The senior starting pitcher has allowed an earned run in just two of his seven starts this season. While only two of the other five resulted in a shutout — Minneota, for example, scored four unearned runs to give Wichmann his only loss of the season — his earned run average is an astonishing 0.52 going into the playoffs while his WHIP is 0.80.

The only game so far in which he’s allowed multiple earned runs was a road matchup against Adrian/Ellsworth. He allowed two earned runs while striking out 13 batters to help the Knights to a 5-2 win in that game, too.

The thing that makes Wichmann an interesting pitcher to walk is his accuracy and his ability to control the game. He’s struck out 76 batters this season, an average of nearly two per inning, while allowing just five walks. His ability to minimize his own mistakes gives opposing batters very little room for error. If he leaves a pitch hanging over the middle, opposing batters better take advantage because they likely won’t see another for the rest of the game.

Aside from his pitching, Wichmann leads the RTR offense in OPS at 1.170 on the season as well. While he doesn’t crush the ball out of the park — he doesn’t have a triple or home run on the season — he always seems to find a way to put his team in a good position while he’s at the plate. He’s doubled eight times in 49 at-bats and his nine drawn walks shows his ability to be patient at the plate as well.

No. 1 Russell-Tyler-Ruthton starts its quest for the 3A Section Championship in Ruthton against No. 8 Adrian/Ellsworth today at 11 a.m. and, with a win, will play again at 3:30 p.m. against No. 4 Edgerton/Southwest Minnesota Christian or No. 5 Wabasso.

No. 3N Dawson-Boyd

Grayson Olson has been a common theme in the Dawson-Boyd baseball team’s success this season. The Blackjacks shortstop has gotten a hit in each of the last six Dawson-Boyd wins. The only win in which he didn’t record a hit, the Blackjacks’ first win of the season, he recorded a save on the mound.

What Olson brings to the team is his ability to hit for power. He’s the only Blackjack with a home run on the season — excluding inside-the-park homers — as well as doubles, total extra-base hits, and is tied with Nate Hansen with a team-high seven RBIs.

Olson’s slugging percentage, .568, is also a team-high, and he’s shown some speed on the base paths with five steals. The key to the game for Olson is going to be his ability to avoid strikeouts. He by no means struggles to put the ball in play — his .378 batting average is second only to Hansen’s .475 — but limiting strikeouts could go a long way. He’s struck out eight, slightly over one-fifth of his 37 at-bats, but his power more than makes up for it.

The No. 3 Blackjacks will play No. 6 MACCRAY in Prinsburg at 1 p.m. to open the 3A tournament. In the teams’ last matchup, Olson had a double and a pair of RBIs. With a win, the Blackjacks would face the winner of No. 2 Central Minnesota Christian and No. 7 Renville County West at 3:30 p.m.

No. 2S MCC

Good pitching is always helpful for a team making a tournament run. It’s even more helpful when the team’s No. 1 starter is on a hot streak. Abe Paulzine leads the Murray County Central rotation with a 1.46 ERA on the season, but that low mark doesn’t tell the whole story.

In Paulzine’s first start of the season, he allowed six earned runs in four innings against Pipestone. While the numbers weren’t an ideal start to the season, he’s bounced back nicely; since then, he’s allowed just two earned runs over eight appearances and 34 1/3 innings, giving him a 0.52 ERA since April 18.

With a few exceptions, such as an 11-strikeout outing against Mountain Lake Area-Comfrey, he doesn’t get the flashy strikeout numbers. He’s totaled 42 on the season, but places the ball in spots that don’t allow opposing hitters to make good contact. About 72% of the batted balls he allows are weakly hit, according to MCC’s season stat log.

Additionally, Paulzine has shown promise on the offensive end. While he’s fourth on the Rebels in OPS, his 1.298 mark would lead many of the teams in the tournament. His 16 RBis are also second behind Derek Kluis’ 19.

No. 2 Murray County Central will face off against No. 7 Red Rock Central/Westbrook-Walnut Grove in the first round of the tournament in Slayton. With a win, they’ll play the winner of No. 3 Minneota and No. 6 Tracy-Milroy-Balaton at 3:30 p.m.