ST. CLOUD -- Luke Frauendienst singled home Austen Hadley with one out in the fifth inning to invoke the 10-run rule as Ridgewater opened the MCAC State Tournament with a 10-0 shellacking of Mesabi Range on Friday.
Chris Braaten tossed a three-hit shutout with no walks and four strikeouts.
The No. 2-seeded Warriors (29-12) will face No. 6 St. Cloud Technical College at 3 p.m. today in the semifinals at Dick Putz Stadium. St. Cloud defeated Itasca 7-5 Friday.
Ridgewater has won all four meetings with St. Cloud Technical this season, winning 11-5, 2-1, 3-1 and 4-2 en route to capturing the MCAC Central Division title with a 14-2 record.
Hadley and Clint Aretz drove in two runs apiece for the Warriors. Aretz, Cameron Lehner and Mike Weber had two hits apiece.
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The Warriors scored in every inning but the second, including a five-run burst in the fifth.
Mesabi Range had beaten the Warriors twice earlier in the season, 9-7 and 3-2, in Dodgertown, Fla.
Ridgewater 10, Mesabi Range 0
Mesabi 000 00 -- 0 3 1
Ridgewater (29-12) 201 25 --10 10 1
HITTING - Mesabi Range: Hatfield 1-for-3; McCallum 1-for-2; Mihalek 1-for-2 ... Ridgewater: Luke Frauendienst 1-for-3, rbi; Cameron Lehner 2-for-3; Shane Kampsen 1-for-1, 3b, rbi; Matt Christensen 1-for-2, rbi; Clint Aretz 2-for-3, 3b, 2 runs, 2 rbi; Kelvin Nelson 1-for-2, 2 runs, rbi; Austen Hadley 1-for-3, 2b, 2 rbi; Mike Weber 2-for-3, 2b, rbi
PITCHING (ip-h-r-er-bb-so) -- Mesabi Range: Navarro (L) 3Zc-7-5-5-1-1, Pecha Xc-0-0-0-0-0, Stevenson Zc-2-5-4-2-1, Goblirsch 0-2-0-0-0-0 ... Ridgewater: Chris Braaten 5-3-0-0-0-4
