MILROY — A sixth-inning rally wasn’t enough to put the Russell-Tyler-Ruthton baseball team on top in its Section 3A elimination bracket matchup against Adrian/Ellsworth on Saturday. The Knights scored a go-ahead run in the sixth, but the Dragons rallied in the bottom of the frame to hand the Knights a 5-3 loss to end their season.

“[In the postgame huddle, I] just wanted to say thank you for our season, everybody putting in the hard work and staying focused,” RTR head coach Danny Moffitt said. “Really going to miss our seven seniors. They were great guys. They’ve been here since I started, so it’s tough. Feel like they’re your kids and they’re moving out, you know? Thought they’d never leave … but great season, I’m proud of them.”

The Knights wrap up the year with an 18-7 record, and they graduate Tyler Wichmann, Gavin Schreurs, Levi Tommeraasen, Kolby Louwagie, Tyson Burns, Isaac Janish, Jackson Kerkaert and Parker St. Aubin.

“They built the program. I mean, when I was trying to get this thing started and stuff, they believed in it,” Moffitt said of his seniors. “They just guided right through it, so they were the core. These kids all love baseball, this was their favorite sport, and it really showed.

RTR scored a go-ahead run in the top of the sixth. Louwagie led off the inning with a chopper up the middle for a single, Janish was hit by a pitch and Colton Chandler battled back from down in the count to draw a walk.

With the bases loaded and no outs, the Dragons got a strikeout and Burns flied out to shallow center field. Louwagie tagged up on the play, and the throw from the outfield beat him to the plate, but Louwagie leaped over the catcher and knocked the ball loose in the process, tagging home for a 3-2 Knights lead.

Yet, Adrian/Ellsworth rallied in the bottom of the frame to take the lead for good. The Dragons led off the inning with consecutive singles when the Knights made a pitching change, putting in Brayden Chandler for Schreurs. A wild pitch allowed the tying run to score, and a walk and a stolen base put runners on second and third with no outs.

The Dragons capitalized even further on a second wild pitch. The lead runner sprinted home, slightly behind the throw, but he knocked the ball loose and tagged the plate for the go-ahead run. As the ball drifted away, a second runner rounded the corner and went home to give Adrian/Ellsworth a 5-3 lead.

Schreurs got the start on the mound for the Knights, throwing the first five innings and starting the sixth before leaving with runners on first and second. He gave up three earned runs and one unearned run on two hits and five walks with five strikeouts. In relief, Chandler gave up one earned run on two walks with three strikeouts.

“Gavin was always that great, sneaky lefty. He’s been producing that way through the whole season, and this was his first loss of the year,” Moffitt said. “All in all, we did good. Execution, we kind of messed up a little bit today, and we had some spots that we could put somebody through when they’re on base, but all in all, we fell short.”

After Chandler struck out three straight batters to end the sixth, RTR had one last chance to force extras in the seventh. Chandler kicked off the rally by reaching on an error, and Tommeraasen was hit by a pitch and Janish walked to load the bases with two outs. Colton Chandler stepped up to the plate and hit a hard grounder to short, but the Dragons fielded the ball cleanly and got the out at second to end the game.

“It doesn’t feel like you gave up 10 [runs], we’re only down by two. We can always score two runs in an inning, we’ve done that plenty of times this year,” Moffitt said of his message to the team ahead of the seventh. “I said ‘Just keep fighting,’ and we did. We put the ball in play, they still had to make the plays, and they did.”

The Dragons retired each of the first two RTR batters of the game, but Wichmann stepped up to the plate and crushed a home run over the wall to get the Knights on the board. Tommeraasen kept the ball rolling with a standup double and was awarded home when Louwagie reached base on a throw that sailed high and out of play.

Tommeraasen was the lone Knight to reach base multiple times, logging a single and a double on the day.

A pair of walks and a fielder’s choice put runners on first and second for Adrian with two outs in the bottom of the frame. The Knights caught a runner in a run down as he tried to steal second, but they couldn’t apply the tag before the runner on third stole home to cut the deficit in half.

The Dragons tied the game in the bottom of the third when they drew a walk and scored on an RTR error with two outs. The miscue was the Knights’ third error in the first three innings.

Adrian put a go-ahead run on base in the bottom of the fifth, but catcher Garrett Elton ranged down the first line to catch a pop out and Wichmann dived to grab a low line drive before firing the ball to first for an inning-ending double play.

BOX SCORE

BATTING

G. Schreurs: 0-3, BB, SB; T. Wichmann: 1-3 (HR), HBP, RBI, R, SO; L. Tommeraasen: 2-3 (2B), HBP, R, SO; K. Louwagie: 1-4, R, SO; I. Janish: 0-2, BB, HBP; C. Chandler: 0-3, BB, SO; T. Burns: 0-3, RBI.

PITCHING

G. Schreurs: L, 5 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 5 BB, 7 SO; B. Chandler: IP, R, ER, 2 BB, 3 SO.