Five Northern Minnesota softball teams are state-bound.
Blackduck, Moose Lake/Willow River and Badger/Greenbush-Middle River qualified in Class A, Esko in 2A and Brainerd in 4A.
The tourney begins Tuesday, June 3, with quarterfinal matches in North Mankato.
No. 5 Brainerd plays No. 4 Bloomington Jefferson at 10 a.m. No. 8 Esko plays No. 1 Randolph at 3 p.m.
The single A schools play at 5:30 p.m., with No. 8 Blackduck taking on No. 1 United South Central, and Badger/Greenbush-Middle River and Moose Lake/Willow River playing each other as the sixth and third seeds, respectively.
Championship games will be Friday at Cowles Stadium at the University of Minnesota.
The Drakes are making their state tournament debut and came back in dominant fashion in the double-elimination section tournament to earn their bid.
Blackduck was the No. 1 seed in Section 5A. After losing to No. 2 Hill City/Northland 1-7 in the semifinals, they beat Pine River-Backus 12-5 to win the elimination bracket, then beat the Storm 7-0 and 10-6 to take the section title.
The Drakes weren't the only team that mounted a comeback, and Esko's was even greater in terms of rallying.
They were crushed 0-10 by Rush City in the quarterfinals and relegated to the elimination bracket. The No. 2 seed went on to beat Mesabi East, No. 1 Greenway/Nashwauk-Keewatin and Aitkin to win the bracket. Esko then beat Rush City twice, 2-0 and 3-0, to win Section 7AA.
Moose Lake/Willow River commanded the Section 7A tourney, never scoring fewer than 10 runs and easily claiming the title.
Perennial state qualifiers Badger/Greenbush-Middle River are 10-1 since early May. The Gaters' only loss in that stretch came to the defending Section 8A champs Red Lake Falls.
Brainerd is returning to the state tourney for the first time since their second-place finish in 2022. The Minnesota State High School League said the Warriors are led by senior pitcher Mya Tautges, who is making her third state-tournament appearance this year.
Tautges was a gold medalist in the swimming and diving state meet and was on the basketball team.
Find more information, including a spectator guide and full schedule, on the MSHSL's website.
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