MONTEVIDEO -- Granite Falls outhit Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop, but five fielding errors were too much to overcome Friday night.
GFW scored six unearned runs en route to defeating Granite Falls 7-5 in a District 7, Division II elimination-bracket final Friday night.
GFW needs to beat Wheaton twice today to win the district title and advance to the state tournament next week at Sacred Heart.
Phil Johnson and Tyler Flattum had three hits apiece to account for six of Granite Falls' nine hits.
Johnson took the loss despite not getting much support in the field.
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Granite Falls went ahead 3-0 in the bottom of the first inning on a sacrifice fly by Andrew Walters and Steve Kvam's two-run single.
But GFW sent 10 batters to the plate in the second to score five runs. It took only three hits around three Granite errors, a hit batter and two walks.
Flattum's two-run double tied it in the third 5-5 for Granite Falls, but GFW went back out in front in the fourth inning with two more unearned runs.
Granite loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh with one. Kvam pulled a shot down the left-field line but the ball landed foul by inches. Andy Melius, the GFW starter, then got Kvam on a come-backer that he turned into a double play to end the game.
Melius, who walked two and fanned five, also knocked in three runs.
Flattum pitched three shutout innings in relief but Melius also blanked Granite the last four frames.
GFW 7, Granite Falls 5
Gibbon-Fairfax-W 050 200 0 -- 7 5 3
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Granite Falls 302 000 0 -- 5 9 5
HITTING - Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop: Sam Van Hon 1-for-2, rbi; Andy Melius 1-for-4, 3 rbi; Reed Salstrom 1-for-4; Cody Berger 1-for-3; Aaron Bruen 1-for-3 .... Granite Falls: Tyler Sand 1-for-4; Phil Johnson 3-for-3; Tyler Flattum 3-for-4, 2 2b's, 2 rbi; Andrew Walters 1-for-2, rbi; Steve Kvam 1-for-3, 2 rbi
PITCHING (ip-h-r-er-bb-so) -- Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop: Andy Melius (W) 7-9-5-2-2-5 ... Granite Falls: Phil Johnson (L) 4-4-7-1-3-2, Tyler Flattum 3-1-0-0-1-2
