CRETE, Neb. - No. 10-seed Seward (22-10) sprung a minor upset on Friday afternoon in Crete, taking down the No. 7-seeded Cardinals (23-10) two games to none in the best-of-three Class B-7 District Final series, sending the Bluejays on to the softball state tournament in Hastings next week.  

These two local rivals are conference foes and just faced off last week in league play, with Crete earning a 9-3 win in a time-shortened, five-inning affair. But on Friday, the Bluejays earned their revenge, prevailing 3-2 and 5-2 in two tight contests to earn a slight upset by seed and advance to the next round.  

In fact, the Bluejays never trailed at any point in the best-of-three series. Senior Jeffi Schaefer hit a solo home run in the top of the first inning to get Seward on the board immediately, and though Crete evened the count at 1-1 after two, Seward then manufactured runs in the fourth and the fifth to grab a 3-1 lead. Makesha Smith hit her first home run of the year in the sixth to get the Cardinals within a run, but they could not get closer: Crete left a whopping total of 15 runners on base in game one, a major contributing factor in a 3-2 win for Seward to start the day.  

Game one was close throughout, but the Bluejays were in command from the get-go in game two. Karlee Baack singled in Lauren Frihauf with two outs in the first inning, and then Emma Frihauf singled in pinch-runner Kalliea Vest with two outs in the second inning to put the Bluejays in front 2-0.  

The tenor of the game changed when Crete catcher Macy Dunaway was ejected after a debatable called strike three in the second inning. And the Bluejays then took a stranglehold on the game by scoring three runs on four straight hits – all with two outs – in the fourth inning. Crete finally got on the board in the fifth inning when star freshman Madynn Dunham – who was intentionally walked all four times she came to the plate in game one – blasted a two-run homer to left, but it was not enough: McKenna Sides, who went the distance in both games, retired the Cardinals in order in the last two innings to wrap up the 5-2 win, secure the sweep for Seward, and send the Bluejays on to the state tournament.  

Seward was one of four higher-seeded teams to earn an “upset” win in their district final this weekend. In fact, in Districts 1-4, the four favored teams won, while in Districts 5-8, the four “underdog” teams won, including No. 10 Seward, who now awaits details on its first-round opponent, date and time in the first round of the softball state tournament in Hastings next week.