Rochester, Minn (July 25th, 2013)–The last stretch of the 2013 season began on Thursday. With three weeks left until the start of the playoffs, teams begin their final push towards the post season. In the North division, the Waterloo Bucks won the first half and hold a comfortable lead, so the push for the second spot may be found between Mankato, Duluth, and St. Cloud who are all neck-and-neck.
Things are also extremely tight in the South. The Lakeshore Chinooks hold a small lead over Madison, but they hold substantial leads over Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and La Crosse who have not yet clinched playoff spots. Lakeshore started the final stretch strongly with a win over Green Bay in ten innings.
The La Crosse Loggers danced with the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters in extra innings on Thursday to take a step forward in the race. A 1-1 tie sent the teams into extras and teams traded runs until La Crosse pushed across the decisive run in the 11th.
Eau Claire 7, Wisconsin 4
The Express pounded out 17 hits and were assisted by four Wisconsin errors in Thursday’s game. Amazingly, only two of the hits went for extra bases and the Express drew zero walks, so runs were relatively hard to come by. Paul Voelker (Dallas Baptist) made the start for Eau Claire and went eight inning while allowing just two earned runs.
Alexandria 5, St. Cloud 2
The Blue Anchors got one of their better all-around performances of the season on Thursday. Starter Tyler Beck (Augsburg) went six innings and allowed two runs on five hits to get the win. He was followed by three innings of one-hit ball by the Alexandria bullpen.
Rochester 13, Willmar 4
The Honkers scored nine runs on their way to a route of Willmar on Thursday. The top four batters in the Rochester order feasted on Stinger pitching all night. Between the four hitters they went 11/21 with nine RBI and four runs scored as they completely torched Willmar.
Lakeshore 6, Green Bay 3 (F/10)
The Chinooks trailed 3-0 after five innings of this game, but they had the will and fortitude to rally for the victory. The Chinook bullpen was the key in coming back as they held the Bullfrogs scoreless over five innings.
Duluth 5, Thunder Bay 1 (F/6)
Even though the game was shortened, Jake Heissler (Central Missouri) still pitched a one-hit game against the Border Cats. Heissler also walked three batters, but he yielded just one run while picking up the win.
La Crosse 4, Wisconsin Rapids (F/11)
After a score of 1-1 sent this game into extras, the two teams traded runs in the 10th and 11th innings before La Crosse pushed across an additional run in the bottom of the 11th for the win. The two starters in this contest were exceptional as they combined for 14 innings, two runs, one walk, and 15 strikeouts on their way to a pair of no-decisions.
Madison 4, Battle Creek 3
The Mallards were able to work around ten hits and two errors as they allowed just three runs to the Bombers on Thursday. They got a lot of help from their bullpen, which was able to hold the Bombers without an earned run through four innings of work while striking out eight batters.
Waterloo 15, Mankato 10
The Waterloo Bucks did as they have a lot since the middle of June on Thursday. Their win over Mankato helps them maintain a solid lead over the rest of the North division, and they are sitting pretty for home-field advantage in the playoffs. They had 25 batters reach base through hits, walks, and errors on their way to the win.
Friday Schedule:
Wisconsin Rapids vs. Lakeshore- 4:05 (Game 1)
Wisconsin Rapids vs. Lakeshore- 7:05 (Game 2)
Rochester vs. Willmar- 7:05
Duluth vs. Thunder Bay- 7:05
Waterloo vs. Mankato- 7:05
Green Bay vs. La Crosse- 7:05
Wisconsin vs. Eau Claire- 7:05
St. Cloud vs. Alexandria- 7:05
Battle Creek vs. Madison- 7:05
