MANKATO, Minn. – For a while Friday, it didn't look like the Yellowjacket baseball team was going to get its game in.
 
Rainy weather in southern Minnesota pushed back the start time close to five hours. When the clock struck 6 p.m., the Yellowjackets, who entered the 2023 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament as the No. 2 seed, began playing for their season.
 
Following Thursday's loss to Crown, the Yellowjackets moved into elimination mode, meaning all of their games the rest of the way would either move them on in the post-season, or bring an end to the most successful season in program history.
 
The Yellowjackets survived to play another day after doubling up Minnesota Morris, 10-5 at Franklin Rogers Park in Mankato.
 
With the win the Yellowjackets (21-14) will advance to play the loser of Friday's game between Bethany Lutheran and Crown.
 
After a rough day Thursday, the Yellowjackets handed the ball to Matt Tappe (St. Anthony, Minn./St. Anthony Village). The junior sidearmer, who has put together a dominant stretch on the mound, defeated Minnesota Morris for the second time this season, giving him a team-leading eight wins on the year. Tappe got it done on the mound, and the Yellowjackets made sure he got some early run support.
 
The Yellowjackets took advantage of a pair of wild pitches to score twice in the bottom of the first. Jonny Rhodes (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) reached on an error to lead off the second inning, and he would come in to score the third Yellowjacket run on a sacrifice fly from Noah Dagostino (Andover, Minn./Andover).
 
In the bottom of the third Nick Fredrikson (Minneapolis, Minn./St. Anthony Village) singled to right field, to bring home Isaac Fugere (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East) with the fourth run of the game for the Yellowjackets. They would make it 5-0 later in the inning when Ben Rhodes (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) scored on a groundout.
 
Morris would finally break through on Tappe with a single run in the top of the fourth, but the Yellowjackets answered in a big way an inning later, scoring three times in the bottom of the fifth.
 
With one out Fugere and Ben Rhodes (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) produced back-to-back singles. Fredrikson drove in his second run of the game, bringing in Fugere with a single to right. Jonny Rhodes (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) followed with a single to left center, bringing in another run to make it 7-1. With runners on the corners, the Yellowjackets executed a double steal to score Fredrikson and make it 8-1 Yellowjackets.
 
Morris built an inning in the top of the sixth, starting things with back-to-back doubles and then loading the bases with two consecutive hitters being hit by a pitch. Two straight groundouts plated a pair of runs and when the inning was done the Yellowjacket saw their lead slashed to 8-4.
 
Fugere led off the Yellowjacket seventh with a single and scored later in the inning on a passed ball. Jonny Rhodes (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) then drove in another run to give the Yellowjackets 10 runs in the game.
 
Morris would get a single run on a two-out home run in the ninth, but it wasn't enough and the Yellowjackets earned the win.
 
Fugere went 3-for-3 and Fredrikson 2-for-3 as the Yellowjackets produced 11 hits in the game. Jonny Rhodes (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) had a hit, and run scored and three runs batted in.
 
Tappe went 5.1 innings, allowing four runs on 11 hits. He didn't walk a hitter and struck out three. Declan Higgins (Minneapolis, Minn./DeLaSalle) threw 1.2 innings of shutout ball, allowing just one hit. Aiden Pfeifer (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) pitched the final two innings.
 
The Yellowjackets will wait out the final game of the day between Bethany Lutheran and Crown to determine who they will play Saturday. The start time of that game is to be determined. Stay tuned to uwsyellowjackets.com for updates.