Deer River at Hill City-Northland
4:30 p.m., Thursday, May 11

The top two teams in the Northern Lakes Conference go head-to-head Thursday in a game Deer River coach Jim Erzar said will decide which takes the league crown.

The Warriors (11-1, 3-0) reached the state tournament two years ago with seven sophomore contributors who are now polished seniors performing at an even higher level.

Through 12 games, the No. 6-1A Warriors have outscored opponents by 79 runs, led by Chad Benham's .500 batting average and eight extra-base hits.

Tyler Anttila has provided some clutch finishes, including a squeeze bunt to push across the winning run in a 6-4 victory against Class 2A Virginia on May 5, and a two-run single to charge a 9-5 comeback over 2A Crosby-Ironton a day later.

Hill City/Northland (8-2-1, 2-1-0) is looking for revenge after losing to Deer River 9-2 in a nonconference tournament game on April 29. The Hornets played that matchup without four regular starters, but the group is expected back for Thursday.

Hill City/Northland senior Lane Gerber owns a .475 batting average while Colton Rabey has struck out just once for an offense that has scored less than five runs in just three games.

The Hornets head into this game seeking their third straight conference title.