Redbirds beat Bulls 12-2, take final spot in Class C tourney

Aug. 18—LUVERNE — The Luverne Redbirds are headed back to state. They earned the final spot from Region 10 in the Minnesota Baseball Association Class C tournament after a 12-2 eight-inning win over the Jackson Bulls Sunday at Redbird Field. That win came after the Redbirds were on the brink of elimination after a game one loss at home last week. They responded with a 5-4 road win in game two on Friday to set up Sunday's deciding game three. In that deciding game, Luverne needed to overcome a 2-0 deficit right away in the first inning. They quickly tied the game in the bottom of that frame before taking the lead in the third and never looking back. The Redbirds finished with 13 hits in a superb effort at the plate. Of those 13 hits, three were doubles and one was a triple. Four Redbirds finished with multiple hits, three of which came off the bat of Casey Sehr. He went 3-for-5 with a double and three RBIs. He also scored two runs. Little brother Carter Sehr collected two hits at the plate, as did Isaac Bonner and Blake Sauer. Carter Sehr also pitched five innings and was solid with six strikeouts and one earned run. Jake Haugen pitched the final three innings and fanned two. Two of Jackson's five total hits in the contest came in the top of the first inning. With two outs, JD Schneider walked and Chris Gumto singled before both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Tyler Netsch then stepped up and hit an RBI single before Gumto scored on an error to prompt a 2-0 Bulls lead. The Redbirds wasted no time leveling the score as Carter Sehr singled and Bonner walked to bring Casey Sehr to the plate. His first hit ensued, which brought both runners home to tie the game. Jackson's lead was very short-lived and no more runs came across for the rest of the game. In the bottom of the third, Bonner hit a one-out single and Casey Sehr was hit by a pitch before a Derek Lundgren single loaded the bases. A fielder's choice gave Luverne the lead and then Skyler Wenninger was intentionally walked to re-load the bases. Cade Wenninger came up and smacked a 2-RBI single as the Redbirds led 5-2 through three innings. In the fourth, a Bonner one-out double was followed by Casey Sehr's second hit and second RBI and then Sauer's two-out RBI double put Luverne ahead 7-2. After three straight walks opened the fifth inning to load the bases, Carter Sehr brought two more runs home. A sacrifice fly scored another in the frame. Luverne's final two runs were scored in the bottom of the eighth to put an early end to the game due to the 10-run rule. After a Will Larson leadoff single, Sauer hit a one-out RBI triple to prompt an 11-2 margin. With Jackson's sixth different pitcher in for what turned out to be the final at-bat, Ethan Beyer singled to score the Redbirds' 12th and final run to send them to state. It is Luverne's 17th overall trip to the state tournament and seventh in the last eight years. The Redbirds open state play Saturday against the Dumont Saints. For the Bulls, Gumto, Netsch, Easton Bahr, Andy Wolf and Will Larson each got a hit. Preston Crees started the game and only went 2.2 innings as he was dinged with five earned runs. He finished with two strikeouts. Larson, Javen Baumgarn, Alex Bretzman, Talan Holm and Andrew Boyum combined to pitch the rest of the game. Jackson's season ended with an 18-11 record.