HADLEY — The Windom Pirates’ loaded lineup was too strong for the Hadley Buttermakers to shut down in game 2 of the teams’ best-of-3 semifinal matchup in the Region 10C tournament. Windom picked up the lead in the third inning and never looked back, leading by as many as nine runs before settling on a 9-2 win to clinch a state tournament berth.

Windom is now riding a 15-game winning streak to a 21-1 record, and will take on the Milroy Irish in the 10C championship series this week to determine which team will take the top seed out of the region into the Class C state tournament.

Lincoln Swanjord was charged with the loss for Hadley, giving up one earned and three unearned runs over four innings. Bryce Ahrendt also gave up a pair of runs over four frames while Dylan Kluis gave up three earned runs in the ninth.

Alex Fink gave the Pirates the lead with an RBI single to score Jake Tauer in the top of the third. An inning later, Tauer hit a sacrifice fly that drove in three runs on a Hadley error to give the Pirates a four-run cushion.

Tauer, a 2024 graduate of SMSU, tied teammate Brett Willaby with a game-high three RBIs on two hits, with Willaby also having a home run and a walk. Tauer’s former teammate with the Mustangs, Keenan Wenzel, recorded a game-high three hits with one RBI.

Max Zwart gave Hadley its lone runs of the game in the bottom of the ninth. Bryce Hokenes got on base after being hit by a pitch and Zwart followed up with a high fly ball into left field that sailed over the wall for a two-run homer. Yet, Collin Lovell came up with three straight strikeouts to end the game.

Alex Peterson accounted for two of Hadley’s four hits with a double and a single, while Derek Kluis also reached base twice with a single and a walk.

A pair of RBI singles from Wenzel and Drew Rothenberger gave the Pirates a pair of sixth-inning runs, and Willaby hit a three-run homer after Luke Gilbertson and Kobe Lovell singled in the ninth to bring the score to 9-0.

Hadley finishes its season at 16-11.

BOX SCORE

HADLEY

D. Rothenberger: W, 6 IP, 2 H, 3 BB, 3 SO; C. Lovell: S, 3 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, 7 SO.