Crunch time hits make all the difference for Century in section tournament win over Mayo

May 26—ROCHESTER — Down two at the top of the seventh inning with one out, it was do or die time for Century.

The No. 7-seeded Panthers chose the former.

In front of a packed crowd at Dale Massey Field, split between the bleachers and folding chairs along the fence, Century put up six runs in the seventh to beat No. 2 seed Mayo 8-4 in the first round of the Section 1, Class 4A tournament. The fans who came out on the holiday to catch some crosstown rivalry baseball couldn't have asked for a much better game.

It was another stellar outing at the plate by senior Aiden Yochim despite spending some time in the hospital over the weekend with a high fever. With a lot of rest and some minor changes to Century's game plan, Yochim was ready to go. He nailed a homer in the fourth inning to help the Panthers tie the game at two apiece.

Yochim finished the afternoon 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored on top of his two-run blast that tied the game at 2 in the fourth. A clutch hit from junior outfielder Jonas Kelso was a turning point for the Panthers. Kelso finished 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run. Senior center fielder Owen Kelly ended the day 2-for-4, driving in two more runs for Century in the seventh.

Panthers pitchers Mike Ruff and Maddox Milene scattered a combined seven hits, four runs and six walks across 6 2/3 innings. The pair struck out 10 total hitters.

The Spartans looked strong entering the final inning, but struggled on the mound. They finished the game with 11 walks. Gavin Werneburg went 1-for-3 with a triple, two RBIs and one run scored for Mayo, which had won both regular season matchups, sweeping a doubleheader on May 8.

Century (10-11, 3-5 in Section 1-4A) will play No. 6 New Prague at 5 p.m. on Wednesday at Memorial Park in New Prague. The Spartans (14-7, 8-1 in Section 1-4A) move on to the Elimination Bracket, where they will host No. 3 Owatonna at 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

Century 8, Mayo 4

Century#000#200#6#—#8#8#1

Mayo#101#020#0#—#4#7#1

Century: Brady Buchmann -for- 1 R; Owen Kelly 2-for-4, 2 RBI; Mike Ruff -for- 1 R; Aiden Yochim 2-for-3, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R; Maddox Milene 1-for-5, 1 R; Adam Rice -for- 2 R; Carter Simonson 1-for-5, 1 SB; Jonas Kelso 2-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 R. Pitchers: Aidan Neshem 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K; Mike Ruff 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 7 K; Maddox Milene (W) 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K.

Mayo: Wyatt Anderson 1-for-1; Carter Funk 2-for-4, 1 RBI; Michael Johnson 1-for-1; Kyle Leopold -for- 1 SB; Gavin Werneburg 1-for-3, 1 3B, 2 RBI, 1 R. Pitchers: Max Thorson 1.1 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 1 K; Kyle Leopold 0.2 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 0 K; Isaac Peterson 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 7 BB, 7 K.