SLAYTON — The Murray County Central baseball team rallied with four sixth-inning runs on Thursday night to launch themselves to a 5-3 comeback win over the reigning section champion Yellow Medicine East Sting in their season-opener.

MCC trailed 2-1 entering the bottom of the sixth inning when Cayden Veldhuisien hit a leadoff single and advanced to second on a Gavin Gillette groundout.

Teague Meyer hit a ground ball to short on the next play but an error allowed Meyer to advance to second and Veldhuisen to go home for the tying run.

YME had another chance to get an out on the next play when Aidan Dierks hit an infield grounder to the mound. The Sting tried to make a play on Meyer but were unsuccessful, putting runners on the corners and no outs.

Dylan Kluis took advantage, drilling a single into right field to drive in Meyer and Dierks to give MCC the lead.

Krew Schneider singled in the next at-bat to put runners on the corners and a wild pitch allowed Kluis to steal home for a 5-2 MCC lead.

The Sting started their last chance at bat with a strikeout and a groundout. Still, they didn’t go down without a fight. Andrew Flaten hit a double with two outs to get on base. The Rebels tried to make a play on Flaten but an error allowed him instead to run all the way home for a run.

Braden Nelson drew a walk and Drew Almich singled to right field to put runners on the corners and the go-ahead run at the plate for the Sting. Yet, a groundout ended the game with MCC on top.

Schneider started the game on the mound for MCC and pitched the first five innings of the game and finished with eight strikeouts and no walks. He allowed just two hits and a pair of runs.

The Rebels trailed when Schneider left the game, leaving him with a no-decision. Owen Gillette instead picked up the win after pitching two innings of relief. He surrendered one run on four hits and a pair of walks.

YME tied the game at 1-1 in the fourth inning after Almich was hit by a pitch in the leadoff at-bat. Jake Peterson came in as a courtesy runner and stole second and third. A flyout and a strikeout kept the Sting’s back against the wall but Eric Jimenez came up with a clutch single to drive in Peterson.

The Sting retired the Rebels in order in the bottom of the frame and, in the top of the fifth, Drew Monson was again hit by a pitch in the leadoff at-bat. The freshman outfielder stole second and third to get in position and sprinted home on a Gage Wilke groundout for the go-ahead run.

Almich recorded the loss on the mound for YME after allowing four earned runs — and one unearned — over 5 1/3 innings. He limited MCC to just two hits and no walks through the first five innings and struck out three batters.

Connor Fagen allowed one hit in 2/3 innings of work.

Krew Schneider hit a solo home run in the second inning to give MCC a 1-0 lead.

The Rebels improve to 1-0 with the win and will return to action today when they head out on the road to face Pipestone at 4:30 p.m.

YME falls to 0-1 and will look to bounce back against MACCRAY in Clara City on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.

Dawson-Boyd 9, HLOF 0

HERON LAKE — The Dawson-Boyd baseball team started its season firing on all cylinders on Thursday. The Blackjacks scored four runs in their first inning of the year and cruised past Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda for a 9-3 victory.

The Blackjacks’ first half-inning at the plate started with a strikeout but momentum shifted rapidly. Beau Johnson reached first on a pop fly and Kameron Sather followed up with a triple to give Dawson-Boyd its first run.

Nathan Hansen kept the ball rolling with an RBI double to score Sather and after Grayson Olson was hit by a pitch, Tygan Long singled to load the bases. Eli Olson was then hit by a pitch to force in Hansen for a run and Grayson Olson scored on a wild pitch to make the score 4-0.

Blake Thompson started on the mound, pitching three innings and allowing two runs on two hits with a pair of walks. He also struck out six batters.

Tygan Long came in and finished off the final four innings to earn the win. He surrendered just one run on four hits with a walk and three strikeouts.

After a dormant second inning, the Blackjacks offense came back to life in the third. Dawson-Boyd drew four consecutive walks to start the frame, with Grayson Olson scoring on a wild pitch and Eli Olson scoring on a passed ball, to make the score 6-0.

A groundout put one out away but Eli Olson scored on another passed ball to make it 7-0 before a strikeout and fielder’s choice ended the inning.

HLOF finally got on the board with a pair of runs in the fourth inning but Dawson-Boyd got them right back with a pair of their own in the sixth. HLOF also added one more run in the seventh frame for window dressing.

Dawson-Boyd, now 1-0 on the year, will go on the road to face Russell-Tyler-Ruthton on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.

Springfield 9, Wabasso 0

WABASSO — The Springfield Tigers were too much for Wabasso in their home opener on Thursday, handing the Rabbits a 9-0 loss.

Joe Liebl pitched five innings for Wabasso, allowing two runs on four hits with six strikeouts. The last two innings after Liebl came out, however, Springfield exploded for seven runs to put the game out of reach.

Jayden Remiger and Calvin Hanna were the only Rabbits to reach base in Jakob Nachreiner’s seven-inning outing for Springfield. He struck out 17 Rabbits on the day and did not allow a walk or hit batter.

Wabasso falls to 0-1 with the loss and will next host Sleepy Eye for a doubleheader on Monday at 4:30 p.m.

PREP SOFTBALL

Springfield 3, Wabasso 2

SPRINGFIELD — An early unearned run ended up being the difference for the Wabasso softball team on Thursday afternoon as the Rabbits fell to Springfield 3-2 in their season-opener.

The Tigers started the bottom of the first by putting a pair of runners on courtesy of a Wabasso fielding error and a single.

The Rabbits seemed poised to escape the jam when Avery Carlson came up with a strikeout and forced a ground ball that led to a fielder’s choice at third. Yet, another error loaded up the bases for Springfield and Brooklyn Sturm stole home to give the Tigers the go-ahead run.

Carlson was an Independent All-Area first-teamer last year for softball and looked like she hadn’t lost a step heading into her senior season. Carlson threw the full six innings, holding Springfield to two earned runs on five hits and a pair of walks. She also struck out a pair of batters.

Wabasso trailed 3-0 entering the top of the fourth when their luck started to change. Sara Carlson hit a leadoff single and Macy Rohlik drilled a line drive to right field for an RBI double. She advanced to third on the Tigers’ failed attempt to throw Carlson out at the plate and scored on a wild pitch to make the score 3-2. Still, consecutive strikeouts stopped the Rabbits from capitalizing any further.

In the bottom of the third, Springfield had a batter on second and two outs. They gave themselves some breathing room when Emma Hauger hit an RBI double to drive in a run and Abby Groebner singled to centerfield to make it a 3-0 game.

Jalivia Richert pitched all seven innings for Springfield, holding Wabasso to two hits and two walks with four strikeouts.

Camryn Irlbeck hit a two-out double in the second inning and advanced to third on an error to threaten to tie the game. Yet, a groundout in the next at-bat stopped her 60 feet from the tying run.

No Rabbits advanced past first base after the fourth inning. Only Annabelle Struntz and Avery Carlson reached base, each drawing a walk.

Wabasso falls to 0-1 with the loss while Springfield improves to 1-0. The Rabbits will look to get above .500 on Monday when they head out on the road for a doubleheader against Sleepy Eye at 4:30 p.m.