THS (14-7) defeated Independence, 1-0, Tuesday afternoon at Laughlin field at Olsen Stadium on the Benedictine College campus in Atchison. Tonganoxie is the No. 6 seed in the East Bracket, while Independence was the No. 11 seed. The Bulldogs ended teh season at 9-9.

Tonganoxie awaits the winner of No. 3 Atchison (14-4) and No. 14 Eudora (7-13). That game is this afternoon, with the winner set to meet Tonganoxie in the regional championship around 4 p.m.

No. 1 Paola (18-2), No. 2 Iola (15-4) and No. 4 Holton (12-5) are the other host teams in the east. West Bracket hosts are No. 1 Pratt (18-2), No. 2 Buhlert (17-3), No. 3 McPherson (17-3) and No. 4 Clay Center (17-3).

The Chieftains will have to defeat a team a second time this season in the regional finals.

Tonganoxie defeated Eudora, 8-2, on May 6 at the Leavenworth County Fairgrounds. And in the regular-season finale, THS defeated Atchison, 4-3, on Wednesday, May 12, at the fairgrounds.

THS placed fourth at state in 2018 after upsetting the top seed at regionals at home and then the No. 1 seed at state in Emporia. THS finished that season 7-18.

In 2019, Tonganoxie upset previously unbeaten Iola, 8-5, in the regional championship at Iola. The Mustangs were the top seed in the East Bracket. Tonganoxie was the No. 6 seed at state in 2019 and faced No. 3 Nickerson in Salina. The game was scoreless in the top of the second when rain forced its postponement. After multiple postponements, the game eventually resumed at Maize near Wichita on field turf. Tonganoxie erased a 5-0 deficit late in the game, but the Panthers eventually scored the winning run and escaped with a 6-5 victory. Nickerson went on to win two more games and won the state title with an 18-2 record. Tonganoxie ended the season at 12-10.

The Panthers are the defending state champs, as the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 4A state tournament will be May 27 and 28 at Dean Evans Stadium in Salina.