New Life Academy didn’t look as polished as its state championship group of a year ago. It didn’t have to be Friday.

Junior Thomas Gunderson rescued the Eagles from a possibly disastrous fifth inning, delivering a run-scoring, two-out double to give the Woodbury school a 4-3 victory over Red Lake in the Class 1A quarterfinals at the Mini Met in Jordan.

“We’re a better team than last year, but didn’t show it,” New Life Academy coach Dave Darr said. “We didn’t have the mental edge we usually have today.”

The Eagles had a chance to break open the game in the fifth after the first two batters singled. However, the next hitter popped up a bunt to the pitcher. After the two runners pulled off a double steal, the lead runner was picked off third base with Gunderson standing at the plate.

“The message we sent the players was to survive and advance,” Darr said. “That’s what we did.”

Thanks to Gunderson. He drove in the go-ahead run with his double after striking out in his first two plate appearances.

“I was a little nervous after my first two at-bats,” Gunderson said. He also had the game-winning RBI in a 1-0 victory over Heritage Christian in the Section 4 championship. “I was pretty mad. I knew I had to get a hit.”

Both teams got their offenses rolling in the opening inning. Red Lake County senior Tristan Knott hit a two-run home run that hit a car entering the stadium beyond the left-field wall.

New Life Academy answered in the bottom half of the inning. Junior Simon Killeen drove a run-scoring double to the center-field fence.

Killeen came back with a bases-loaded, two-run single to left field in the second inning. He finished 2-for-3 with three RBI.

“I was in a little slump with my bat in the section,” Killeen said. “It was nice to see it come back to where it has been.”

Knott tied it at three-all in the fourth, scoring on a perfectly executed squeeze bunt by Taylor Kenfield. The Rebels' losing pitcher walked to open the inning.

“All you have to get is one more run than the other team,” Killeen said. “That’s all it takes.”

New Life Academy will play the winner of Brandon-Evansville and Lewiston-Altura in the semifinals Saturday starting at 10 a.m.