Jul 2, 2023
Staff photo by Travis Rosenau Sleepy Eye Legion Post 7’s Talan Helget pitches againt Plover in the Upper Midwest Classic championship game on Sunday at Johnson Park in New Ulm.
NEW ULM — Plover scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to take a 4-1 lead over Sleepy Eye and went on to down Post 7 by a score of 4-2 Sunday afternoon in the championship game of the 2023 Upper Midwest Classic at Johnson Park.
Keltin Opper got the win for the Black Sox, going 5 2/3 innings. He allowed one run on five hits and fanned three.
Brandon Schmitz was tagged with the loss for Sleepy Eye in relief of starter Talan Helget.
Jon Petermann had two hits for Sleepy Eye.
Sleepy Eye head coach Zach Haala said that he was super proud of the way that his team played in the tournament.
“We faced a lot of really good teams and I think that we showed that we can play with anyone,” he said. “I am super proud of their fight — a lot of guys stepped up in different ways in this tournament and accepted their roles and have nothing to be ashamed of. Getting second place is a super big achievement for Sleepy Eye. We represented the town well in this tournament.”
Earlier in the day Sleepy Eye — ranked ninth in DII American Legion teams in Minnesota — shocked the No. 2-ranked DI team with a 6-5 win over Mankato American.
Post 7 trailed 5-0 after three innings but plated five runs in the fourth inning after there were two outs.
An Owen Weiss single jump-started the rally. Nick Mielke and Jon Petermann walked. Weiss raced home on an Austin Uecker single. Cody Schultz then drove a dagger into Mankato with a three-run double before Arian Saenz followed with a game-tying double.
Post 7 then scored the eventual game-winning run in the top of the seventh on a Caden Evers RBI single.
Winsten Nienhaus then blanked Mankato in the bottom of the seventh, sending Sleepy Eye to face the top-ranked American Legion team in Wisconsin.
Haala said that beating two state-ranked teams is something that his players are aware of.
“We see those rankings,” he said. “We try to pay no attention to them until after the game and then talk about it. We beat the No. 2 (DI) team in Minnesota and we held right with the number one team in Wisconsin. But from our eyes, we are right there with the best of them.”
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