Owatonna Aces Seek Two-of-a-Kind

Two of a kind might not generally beat a full hand of aces, but the Owatonna Aces amateur baseball team would love to have back-to-back wins this weekend in the Region 5C tournament. Going 2-0 would vault them into the state tournament for the first time since 2015. Three teams will reach state from the region.

Owatonna plays Rochester at 1 pm Saturday, August 8 in Cannon Falls. The Aces edged the Road Runners 9-8 July 13 in their only meeting this season. Owatonna is likely to start Brandon Wolf on the mound. According to stats from the Minnesota amateur baseball site, Wolf is 3-2 with a 2.23 ERA. He has 34 strikeouts and just 12 walks in over 36 innings pitched.

Batting leaders for the Aces include Kodey Kiel at .529 with two home runs and 14 RBI. Matthew Simon is hitting .323 with a homer and six driven in. Payton Beyer is hitting .308. Kiel has three saves.

Owatonna compiled a 6-4 record during the abbreviated season.

• L 5-2 at Austin
• W 8-2 vs Pine Island
• L 7-5 at Waseca
• W 4-3 at Stewartville/Racine
• W 9-8 at Rochester
• L 11-7 vs Dodge County
• L 3-2 vs Wanamingo
• W 3-2 vs Winona
• W 12-2 vs Austin
• W 15-2 vs Waseca

The Region 5C schedule:
Saturday, August 8
Game 1: Red Wing vs Lake City, 10 am
Game 2: Owatonna vs Rochester, 1 pm
Game 3: Cannon Falls vs Stewartville Racine, 4 pm
Game 4: Austin vs Wanamingo, 7 pm
Sunday, August 9
Game 1 loser vs Game 2 loser, 10 am
Game 3 loser vs Game 4 loser, 1 pm
Game 1 winner vs Game 2 winner, 4 pm
Game 3 winner vs Game 4 winner, 7 pm

All games are in Cannon Falls. The two teams that go 2-0 qualify for the State Class C tournament and will play a seeding game on Friday, August 14 at 8 pm. The four remaining teams will battle for the final berth to state from the region on Saturday, August 15.

At last report, the state amateur tournament will be hosted by Springfield and Milroy.