Photo by Jake McNeill: The Russell-Tyler-Ruthton baseball team celebrates receiving the section championship trophy after picking up a pair of wins over Yellow Medicine East at the Section 3A tournament final at Yankee Field in Milroy on Thursday.

MARSHALL — The Russell-Tyler-Ruthton baseball team is headed to the state tournament for the first time in program history. Two years after the Knights were walked off by Yellow Medicine East in the 2023 section final, the two met again at Yankee Field in the 2025 3A section final. The Knights once again entered the championship round out of the elimination bracket, but strung together a 15-5 win to force a Game 2 and decisively won 18-3 in six innings in the winner-take-all second game to clinch a state berth.

“It feels good to just go out and do it with my boys. I mean, it’s not as much just doing it for the first time in school history as much as [I want to] keep playing with my boys for as long as I can,” RTR third baseman Brayden Chandler said.

RTR head coach Danny Moffitt, in his second year with the team, said that he felt fortunate to come into a program with the caliber of athletes that the Knights have. He cited specifically the family history of the team’s players as a motivating factor.

“These guys have been itching, even some of the parents or their older brothers have been here before and we finally took that extra leap,” Moffitt said. “We knew what we needed to do. Dawson-Boyd was a tough team as well, and then again with YME, but I knew that with our guys and our arms, we could do it tonight.” 

Chandler led the RTR hitters with six hits, six runs and four RBIs over the course of the two games while Gavin Schreurs and Sean Griesse each added another four hits over the course of the two games.

On the hill, Eli Determan threw 5 1/3 innings while limiting the Sting to one earned run to earn the win in the clincher, while Tyler Wichmann threw the first 4 2/3 innings of the first game to earn the win on the mound. Schreurs pitched a total of three innings of relief across the two games.

“It was tough [to pitch in the rain], but I tried to figure it out and I have to give credit to my outfield, they did a wonderful job out there backing me up,” Determan said, adding that he felt the team did a good job of adjusting to prevent defensive errors after its last game against the Sting.

“[Determan] has been great on the mound from last year to this year,” Moffitt said. “He’s kind of like the rock. He gets his own things figured out, I don’t really have to worry about him. He works hard on what he needs to do and adjusts on his own.”

Thursday’s games were the third and fourth of the season between RTR and YME. The Knights beat the Sting 3-2 in YME’s season-opener but fell 7-6 to YME on a Gage Wilke walk-off in the section semifinals. Still, RTR battled back through the elimination bracket to dominate Thursday’s rematches.

Gunnar Fagen and Drew Monson were charged with the losses for YME while Gage Wilke and Braden Nelson led the team with three hits each at the plate.

RTR (19-7) will now await its seeding for the Class A state tournament at Joe Faber Field in St. Cloud, with the state quarterfinals being held on Tuesday starting at 11 a.m. The state tournament berth is something that Moffitt said the team envisioned as its potential at the start of the year.

“I told them that we have all the weapons, all the players that we need, and we have a very good chance,” Moffitt said. “I’ve been up there [to the state tournament] and I told them to enjoy every moment and give it everything they’ve got.”

YME finishes its season at 13-7. It was another successful year for the Sting, who earned the No. 2 seed in the 3A tournament’s North bracket and returned to the section championship game two years after earning their first state tournament berth. Richter credited the recent success of YME baseball to the area’s development of talent at the youth level.

“We picked a bad day to have a bad day, but we’re super proud of our kids and super proud of our effort,” YME head coach Nick Richter said. “Give [RTR] a lot of credit, they hit the ball, put pressure on us the whole time both games, and they earned it.”

The Sting graduate six seniors in Christianson, Wilke, Peterson, Nelson, Jimenez and Connor Schmitz.

“They’re a big part of [the team’s success]… They were great leaders, good kids and just a big part of our program,” Richter said. “They showed up ready to play all the time and it helped with our younger guys. They were just a good group and we’re going to miss them… But we have some younger kids coming up too, and hopefully we can find a way to get back here.”

RTR 15, YME 4

RTR claimed the lead in the top of the fourth when Chase Christianson walked and Sean Griesse singled to put two runners on with one out. Gavin Schreurs lined a single into left field and Christianson beat the throw home for the go-ahead run. From there, a Gabe Elton double also allowed Grieese to beat a throw home and Schreurs and Elton scored on a Brayden Chandler single.

Chandler advanced to second on the throw home and then scored when Eli Determan singled up the middle with two outs and Drew Chandler dropped another single into no-man’s land in left field to score Determan, capping off the Knights’ six-run inning with an 8-2 lead. 

Chandler and Schreurs each tallied four hits in the game, with three RBIs for Chandler, while Griesse added another three. 

“I hadn’t really been hitting it before today, and my mom told me to put my elbow up,” Chandler said. “I kind of thought I’d give it a try, and it worked for me so I’ll keep working with it as long as I can.”

Gunnar Fagen was charged with the loss for YME in his four-inning start on the hill. He surrendered seven earned runs and one unearned run on 11 hits and a walk.

Fagen got the Sting back on the scoreboard while trailing by six runs in the fifth. Kian Christianson walked and Braden Nelson singled to put two runners on, and Fagen drilled a triple into straightaway center field to bring in both runs. Fagen then went on to score when Gage Wilke reached on an RTR error, cutting the deficit to 8-5.

Jacob Peterson drew another walk, prompting RTR to relieve Wichmann on the mound with Schreurs taking over. Wichmann finished his 4 2/3-inning outing with five earned runs allowed on seven hits and five walks with a strikeout while Schreurs closed out the game with 2 1/3 scoreless innings allowing two hits with two strikeouts.

Eric Jimenez lined a single up the middle to start the bottom of the second, with the ball sailing just a hair too far for Elton’s diving effort at short to get a glove on it. Wilke advanced Jimenez into scoring position with a bunt and Gavin Torvik singled to put runners on the corners with two outs.

Lane Wohlman stepped up the plate and capitalized on the opportunity for the sting, driving a triple into right field, scoring both runners for the game’s first runs. 

Still, RTR answered quickly in the top of the third. Schreurs led off the frame with a single, stole second and advanced to third on an Elton sacrifice bunt. A wild pitch lost by the catcher allowed Schreurs to go home for a run and Tyler Wichmann followed up with a double to center field. 

YME tried to catch Chandler advancing to third, but the ball sailed out of play into the YME dugout and Chandler instead advanced home for the tying run.

A Christianson double, a Griesse single, and a failed attempt by YME to get the out at third on a Schreurs grounder allowed RTR to load the bases with no outs in the top of the seventh. Elton took a pitch off the helmet to force in one run for the Knights and Brayden Chandler took another off his back to force in a second for a 10-5 RTR lead. 

“It always just feels good [in the dugout]. It was always energy, no matter what,” Brayden Chandler said. “When things weren’t as great, it was just always positive and always felt good to be in a spot where you know you feel like you’re going to win, no matter what.”

YME took Nelson off the mound after the second hit batter, finishing his day with a statline of two earned runs allowed on four hits over two innings. He also struck out a pair of batters before being relieved by Jimenez, who went on to give up two earned runs on a hit and two walks over one frame of work.

Still, YME struggled to put the ball over the plate. Wichmann and Determan walked consecutively to plate another pair of runs and Drew Chandler and Seth Cowell each drove in another run on a sacrifice fly and a single, bringing the RTR lead to 14-5. 

The Sting loaded the bases in the third with one out on walks to Drew Monson, Fagen and Jimenez. Yet, Elton fielded a ground ball at short and flipped it to Tyson Burns at second, who then threw it to Chase Christianson at first to turn an inning-ending double play to keep the game tied.

YME also put runners on first and second with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, but Elton flashed the glove to catch a line drive to end the game. 

GAME 2 (6 inn.)

YME 18, RTR 3

Cowell led off the second with a walk before being replaced on first by Christianson on a fielder’s choice. Griesse walked and Schreurs was hit by a pitch to load the bases, and Elton singled into left field to score a pair of runners and put the Knights on the board early.

Wilke wasn’t able to field the throw at the plate, allowing Schreurs and Elton to both advance into scoring position, and a pair of wild pitches allowed Schreurs and Elton to score and extend the Knights’ cushion to four runs. 

“We wanted the momentum [from the first game] to go there, but I didn’t want to get too relaxed because this game of baseball, it’s anybody’s,” Moffitt said. “You’ve got to show up. On Saturday, we didn’t [show up], had too many errors, and YME, they’re gritty. They’re a young team, and that Gunnar Fagen is going to be a stud. And he’s only a freshman, so tip of the cap to him.”

Determan picked up the win for the Knights, limiting YME to one earned run on five hits and two walks over 5 1/3 innings. He also struck out four batters and held YME scoreless for his first three innings on the mound. Schreurs got the final pair of outs to close out the game.

A moderate rain started to set in after RTR’s third run of the inning but dwindled in the middle of the third. The rain stopped and started for the remainder of the game. 

Monson pitched the first two innings for RTR, giving up four earned runs on a pair of hits with five walks. He also struck out three batters.

RTR continued to pad its lead in the third. With one out, Christianson was hit bya  pitch and Griesse singled to put two runners on, and Schreurs came up with a two-run single. Elton and Brayden Chandler were then hit by another pair of pitches to load the bases and Wichmann walked in one run.

Drew Chandler capped off the RTR rally by reaching on an error with two outs, scoring Brayden Chandler and Wichmann to bring the Knights’ lead up to 9-0. 

Elton, Cowell and Brayden Chandler each racked up a pair of hits for RTR in the game, including a double each for Chandler and Elton, while Wichmann drew three walks.

YME got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth when Jimenez singled with two outs and scored on a Wilke double, cutting the RTR lead to eight runs.

After being shut down in the fourth, RTR brought the run rule into play by getting its offense back in gear in the fifth. Brayden Chandler led off the inning with a single, Wichmann reached on an error and Determan was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. From there, three consecutive wild pitches allowed three runs to score, bringing RTR’s edge to 12-1. 

Determan retired the first two Sting batters he faced in the bottom of the fifth, leaving RTR one out away from a mercy-rule win. Yet, three consecutive singles by Kian Christianson, Monson and Nelson loaded the bases, a walk to Fagen forced in a run and Eric Jimenez was hit by a pitch to force in another and take away the mercy rule.

Still, YME’s rally only delayed the inevitable. Schreurs led off the sixth with a walk, stole second and third and scored on an Elton single. Brayden Chandler then doubled in Elton and, after a Wichmann walk, Wichmann scored on a Determan single before YME got a single out.

Cowell, Christianson and Griesse each drove in another run for the Knights on a single, ground out and single respectively to give RTR a 15-run cushion heading into the bottom of the frame. An error and a single put Dane Hildahl and Caysen Lien on base for the Sting in the bottom of the frame, but Schreurs entered the game and Griesse came up with a running catch in center field before throwing it to Chandler at third, who beat the runner to the bag for the game-sealing double play.