MARION — Southern Illinois had two chances to beat Paderborn, German to earn a spot in the championship game of the Colt 16U World Series. The SI squad made sure it would not have to play a second game, taking care of Paderborn 10-3 at Thrillbilly Stadium in Marion Monday evening.

Southern Illinois will now face Youngstown, Ohio in the finals. Youngstown beat Chiba, Japan by the same 10-3 score to advance.

SI trailed 1-0 after two innings before scoring five runs in the second. Nick Hubbard’s (Herrin) tiebreaking, two-run single was the highlight of the inning.

Paderborn scored single runs in the bottom of the third and fifth to close within 5-3, but Hubbard and his Herrin teammate Talan Nemeth had RBI singles as Southern Illinois tacked on three runs in the sixth. Johnston City’s Cannon Ashmore added a two-run single in the seventh.

SI will face a Youngstown squad that dominated the other side of the bracket, outscoring its three opponents 39-9. The championship game is set for 7:00 Tuesday night in Marion.

The bid for a three-peat by the host Marion squad came to an end earlier in the afternoon with a 4-2 loss to Chiba, Japan.