Playoff baseball: Northwestern upends Spooner, Aitkin stymies Duluth Marshall
In the Division 3 regional semifinal, third-seeded Northwestern downed sixth-seeded Spooner 8-3. Meanwhile, second-seeded Aitkin upset top-seeded Duluth Marshall 10-0 in the 7AA semifinal.
After losing by six two weeks ago, the Rails opened the scoring in the first with two runs off wild pitches. Then in the next inning, Spooner extended the lead on an RBI single by Jarrett Meier.
The Tigers evened things up in the third with a pair of hits from Anthony Calore and Bryer Burkhart as well as a wild pitch. With the game tied at three in the sixth, Northwestern erupted for five runs to pull away and secure the victory.
As a result, Ryan Teal’s squad improved to 18-6 and visits No. 2 Boyceville Wednesday. On the other hand, the Rails end the year 10-15.
On the Minnesota side, the defending Section 7AA champion Duluth Marshall hosted the two seed Aitkin in the section semifinal.
From the jump it was all Gobblers as they put up a quick three runs in the first inning. After recording a single run in the second inning, they erupted for another four runs in the third to take an 8-0 lead.
The Hilltoppers would keep the Gobblers off the scoreboard in the fourth, but another pair of runs in the fifth put Marshall on the ropes of a mercy rule.
They wouldn’t be able to extend the game, and Aitkin came away with a 10-0 win to secure its spot in the title game.
Jack Jacobson only allowed three hits on the mound for Aitkin in his five scoreless innings.
Marshall’s Charlie Hayden also played his 134th game of his high school career, setting a new state record in Minnesota.
The Hilltoppers took down Pequot Lakes 7-3 in the elimination bracket final to set up a rematch between them and the Gobblers in Thursday’s title game.
Aitkin now sits at 22-2 while Marshall holds a 19-7 record heading into their rematch. First pitch is set for 5:00 p.m. at Fichtner Field on Thursday, June 4.
For Related Stories: Duluth Marshall Athletics  Northwestern Athletics  Aitkin Athletics  Spooner High School  High School Baseball  WDIO Sports