The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters won their ninth game in a row as they needed 12 innings to put away the Kalamazoo Growlers in a shootout. Rapids now holds a three-game lead over Battle Creek and Kenosha in the South. The St. Cloud Rox saw their seven-game winning streak come to an end in a defeat to the Waterloo Bucks, but they still hold a game lead on them in the North.

Rochester 4, La Crosse 5

The La Crosse Loggers scored the go ahead run in the bottom of the eighth to go and defeat the Rochester Honkers 5-4. The game went scoreless for the first three innings and then the Honkers got two home runs including a two-run shot by Jordan Hart (Minnesota State Mankato) and a solo from Michael Michalak (DMACC). The Loggers responded to take the lead with a pair of two-run home runs in the bottom of the sixth from Nicholas Kahle (Washington) and Taylor Sanagorski. The Honkers tied the game with a run in the seventh, but the eventual game winner came in the eighth for the Loggers when Kahle drove in Nick Schranck (UT-Rio Grand Valley) from a single. Chris Boettcher (Indianapolis) pitched the final two, only allowed one hit on one walk and earned the win.

Kalamazoo 12, Wisconsin Rapids 13

The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters won their 11th game of the season as they scored three in the ninth to force extra innings which led to their 13-12 victory over the Kalamazoo Growlers. The Growlers scored first in the top half of the opening inning, but the Rafters answered for two in the bottom half. Kyle Ziegler (Northwood) tied the game for Kalamazoo in the second with a solo home run. The Growlers tacked on two more in the third from an error and a wild pitch. Javier Martinez (Northwood) hit a solo shot for Kalamazoo in the top of the fourth, but Rapids answered again for four in the bottom half. Ryan Stekl (Canisius) drove in five for the game and three came from a double in that inning. The Growlers scored their own four-run inning in the sixth from a Ryan Mergener (Wayne State) grand slam. Nic Motley (McLennan CC) led off the bottom half with a solo shot to bring Rapids within two. After the Growlers scored two in the seventh, Rapids would score in the next three innings, including a three-run ninth to force extras. Finally, in the bottom of the twelfth, Dustin Woodcock (SIU-Edwardsville) drove in Bryson Stott (UNLV) for the game winner.  

Waterloo 5, St. Cloud 2

The Waterloo Bucks snapped the St. Cloud Rox seven-game winning streak as they defeated them 5-2 tonight. The Bucks got the first run of the game in the top of first when Zach Malis (Grand Canyon) drove in his tenth run of the season from a sac fly. Malis would come around to score in the fifth which started a three-run inning. The Rox would then cut their deficit in half with a pair of runs in the bottom half, but Jay Schuyler (San Diego) hit an RBI double in the next inning to put the Bucks up for good. Hunter Spencer (Bellarmine) improved his record to 2-1 after pitching 5.2, only allowing the two runs on five hits and struck out four. Brandon Downey (Maryville) picked up his third save of the season after throwing a scoreless ninth.

Thunder Bay 7, Mankato 5

The Thunder Bay Border Cats score in the final three innings to defeat the Mankato MoonDogs 7-5. The Border Cats scored twice in the top of the first from an error by the pitcher and an RBI single from Jean-Francois Garon (Bradley). The MoonDogs would answer with a run in the bottom half and take the lead from three in the fourth. Garrison Schwartz (Grand Canyon) hit a solo home run for Mankato to tack on an insurance run. The Border Cats would then begin their rally in the seventh with two runs, a pair in the eighth to take the lead and an insurance run in the top of the ninth. Thunder Bay’s reliever Asher Cook (Navarro) picked up the win and Brady Hill (Belmont Abbey) earned the save as he threw a scoreless ninth.

Wisconsin 5, Madison 4

The Wisconsin Woodchucks survived a late rally from the Madison Mallards to win 5-4 on a walk-off hit in the top of the ninth. The Chucks scored first in the third when Tristan Clarke (New Orleans) knocked in an RBI double. Doran Turchin (Illinois) tied the game for the Mallards in the fourth when he scored on a fielder’s choice. The Chucks scored two unearned runs in the fifth and scored again in the seventh when Ivan Nunez (Hillsborough CC) hit an RBI single. Madison had only two hits over the first seven, but they managed to tie things up in the eighth with three from two doubles and a single. Nunez delivered again, his fifth hit of the game was a double to score the eventual game winning run. Orsen Josephina (Hillsborough CC) then picked up his fifth save in as many chances to preserve the win for Wisconsin.

Fond du Lac 3, Rockford 7

The Rockford Rivets improved to 7-5 on the season as they defeated the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders 7-3 as they dropped to 3-9. The Spiders scored first in the top of fourth when Eric Gilgenback (Notre Dame) drove in his tenth of the season from a double and he later scored on an error. The Rivets responded to take the lead in the fifth from a three-run home run by John Rave (Illinois State). A sac fly and an RBI single drove in two more for the Rivets in the next inning. Zach Rheams (Texas Tech) and JC DeMuri (Quincy) added insurance runs from back-to-back solo home runs. Orynn Veillon (New Orleans) responded with a home run of his own for the Dock Spiders in the eighth, but Matt Miller (Louisiana Tech) settled in and threw a scoreless ninth for a three inning save.

Bismarck 5, Eau Claire 2

The Bismarck Larks scored first and never looked back as they improved their record to 7-5 with a 5-2 win over the Eau Claire Express. The Larks got two early runs in the opening run from a wild pitch and an RBI single by Newt Johnson (South Dakota State). The Express got a run back in the fifth from an RBI single by Rudy Rott (Ohio) and both teams traded runs in the sixth including a solo home run by Cullen Smith (East Tennessee State) for the Larks. Bismarck would get two more runs in the next two innings while the Larks bullpen closed the door on the Express with three scoreless to end the game.

Green Bay 9, Lakeshore 6

The Green Bay Bullfrogs scored in six straight and held off a late rally by the Lakeshore Chinooks to win 9-6. Lakeshore scored the first run of the game in the bottom of the second when Justin Bardwell (Fordham) hit a solo shot. The Frogs answered to tie the game in the third when Troy Johnston (Gonzaga) scored on an error by the first basemen. Green Bay then took the lead in the fourth from an RBI single and extended it with a solo home run by Kyle Benyo (Youngstown State) in the next inning. Johnston would be responsible for another in the sixth, but the Chinooks answered for two in the bottom half. Benyo wasn’t done as he hit another solo shot in the seventh which started a four-run inning. Green Bay would do its best as they extended their lead in the eighth, but Lakeshore wasn’t done. Nick Cheema (Arizona State) scored two from a single and came around to score in the ninth. Darren Kelly (Alabama State) then earned a one pitch save when he came in and got the final out for the Frogs.

Willmar 4, Duluth 3

The Willmar Stingers used a two-run third to edge out the Duluth Huskies in a 4-3 victory despite allowing 11 hits. The Huskies and Stingers traded single runs in the opening inning from RBI doubles. Marcus Still (New Mexico State) picked up two more stolen bases in the third to put his season total at 13. He scored along with Caleb Ledbetter (Montevallo) on a two-run single. An error drove in one for the Huskies in the fourth to keep them in the game. Both teams traded runs once again in the seventh, but that was not enough for Duluth. The final two pitchers for the Stingers threw 2.1, only allowed four hits combined and struck out two.

Kenosha 8, Battle Creek 2

The Kenosha Kingfish scored eight runs in the first three innings and held onto defeat the Battle Creek Bombers 8-2. Battle Creek struck first in the opening inning when Alex Howard (Arkansas State) scored on a fielder’s choice. The Kingfish took the lead in the second when Derek Bengert (Bradley) scored on a fielder’s choice and Chris Botsoe (Iowa Western CC) hit an RBI single. Kenosha broke the game open in the third which started on a bases loaded walk to score Mike Madej (Purdue). Two RBI singles, a double and an error drove in the other five runs for Kenosha. After four scoreless innings, Battle Creek got a solo home run from JD Mundy (Virginia Tech). Riley Pelischek (Madison College) settled in and threw a scoreless ninth to shut the door on the Bombers. Michael Costanzo (Austin Peay) bounced back from his previous start and earned the win tonight after throwing seven, only allowed one run on two hits and struck out six.

 

Schedule for June 11:

Madison @ Wisconsin Rapids (1:05 PM)

Bismarck @ Rochester (1:05 PM)

Kalamazoo @ Green Bay (1:05 PM)

Battle Creek @ Wisconsin (3:05 PM)

Waterloo @ Duluth (3:05 PM)

Willmar @ St. Cloud (4:05 PM)

Kenosha @ Rockford (4:05 PM)

Fond du Lac @ Lakeshore (5:05 PM)

Mankato @ Eau Claire (5:05 PM)

Thunder Bay @ La Crosse (5:05 PM)