BLACKSOX HEADED TO DISTRICT 6 CHAMPIONSHIP

The Freeman town team is heading to the 2022 State Amateur Baseball Tournament next month. The only question is if it will head to Mitchell as the District 6 champion or Representative No. 1.

The third-seeded Blacksox punched their ticket to Cadwell Park late Sunday night, July 24 with an edge-of-your-seat 11-9 win over second-seed Tabor on their home field in the semifinals of the district tournament. Freeman will now face fourth-seeded Wynot, which upset top-seeded Lesterville 6-3 in 12 innings earlier on Sunday, in the championship game set for Saturday, July 30 at 7 p.m. in Freeman.

The loser’s bracket will play out Thursday night. No. 5 Crofton will play Tabor at 6 p.m. followed by No. 6 Menno against Lesterville. The winners will advance to state.

Both of Sunday’s semifinal games were thrillers played in front of a large crowd at Merchants State Bank Field on a perfect late-July night for baseball.

“You couldn’t have asked for two more exciting games,” said Freeman player/manager Jake Weier. “Our boys battled hard.”

The Bluebirds jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but the Blacksox scored four runs in the third and the fifth innings to claim an 8-3 advantage. Tabor battled back, however, to even the score at 9-9 before Freeman plated what ended up being the game-winning runs in the eighth inning, when a two-out single by Blake Schroedermeier scored Owen Fester and Bailey Sage.

Tabor mounted one last threat in the bottom of the ninth and had the bases loaded, but closer Nate Brohman closed the door on the Bluebirds with a strikeout to end the game.

The District 6 tournament got underway Friday, July 22 with two games: Wynot defeated Crofton 8-3 and Freeman outlasted Menno 3-1.

The Class B State Amateur Baseball Tournament begins in Mitchell Aug. 3.