Published On: July 22nd, 2016

The Northwoods League returned to action in a big way on Thursday night. After a three-day All-Star break, three teams won in walk-off fashion, including Wisconsin, Thunder Bay and Green Bay. Tonight's game between Madison and Kalamazoo was postponed to tomorrow. The two teams will play a pair of seven-inning doubleheaders beginning at 5 p.m.

St. Cloud 7, Eau Claire 5 – Game 1

The St. Cloud Rox scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to defeat the Eau Claire Express 7-5 at home on Thursday night. The game was picked up in the bottom of the third from a game that was continued from a game postponed on June 7. The Rox recorded 11 hits, and those 11 hits came from five players, who finished with multiple hits in the game. St. Cloud rightfielder and leadoff batter Marcus Carson (University of Kentucky) hit 3-for-5 at the plate and scored a run. For Eau Claire, its centerfielder and leadoff hitter Ben Mezzenga (Minnesota) finished 3-for-5 with a run scored, one run batted in and a pair of stolen bases in the loss.

St. Cloud 5, Eau Claire 0 – Game 2

The St. Cloud Rox completed the doubleheader sweep with a 5-0 shutout victory over the Eau Claire Express in a seven-inning Game 2. St. Cloud jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first inning and scored a single run in the third, fourth and fifth for the five-run win. Dan Metzdorf (Boston College) had a big game on the mound for the Rox. Metzdorf threw six scoreless innings and allowed five hits and a walk with two strikeouts to pick up the victory. St. Cloud recorded eight hits in the game, and seven batters finished with at least one hit on the night.

Wisconsin 6, Lakeshore 5

The Wisconsin Woodchucks scored twice in the bottom of the ninth inning to walk off against the Lakeshore Chinooks on Thursday night. A three-run homer from Lakeshore rightfielder Darius Sewell (Georgia State) in the top of the sixth to put the Chinooks ahead 5-4, which remained the score until the bottom of the ninth inning. After a pair of walks and a single, the Woodchucks had the bases loaded with nobody out. Steve Passatempo (UMass Lowell) singled to score two runs and gave Wisconsin a 6-5 walk-off victory. Passatempo hit 2-for-5 with three runs batted in.

Thunder Bay 7, Rochester 6

The Thunder Bay Border Cats came back from a four-run deficit and defeated the Rochester Honkers 7-6 in a walk-off win on Thursday night. Rochester held a 6-2 advantage in the middle of the sixth inning. With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Michael Papierski (Louisiana State University) tripled to clear the bases and plate three runs for the Border Cats. The score remained 6-5 until the bottom of the ninth. Thunder Bay's Shane Shepard (North Carolina State) homered to tie the game, and two batters later, Mitch Bigras (Boston College) tripled two batters later to score the game-winning run.

Mankato 13, Waterloo 10

The Mankato MoonDogs scored nine runs in the first inning and held on to defeat the Waterloo Bucks 13-10 at home. Mankato leftfielder Jake Shepski (Notre Dame) hit 3-for-4 with a walk, two runs and one RBI, while its shortstop Alvaro Rubalcaba (Cal St. Northfield) finished 2-for-5 with three runs scored, one steal and two RBI. Waterloo had home runs from Robert Neustrom (Iowa), Adam McGinnis (Western Illinois) and Tyler Curtis (Lynn University), but the Bucks committed three errors in the loss.

Kenosha 7, Battle Creek 6

The Kenosha Kingfish scored a run in the eighth inning to pull ahead and defeat the Battle Creek Bombers on the road on Thursday night. Kenosha held a 5-2 advantage in the fourth, but the game was tied up at six after seven innings. The Kingfish took the lead in the top of the eighth with one run, which wound up being the game-winner. Battle Creek outhit 15-7 but committed three errors in the loss. Marty Bechina (Michigan State), Pete Schuler (Kent State) and Matt Byars (Michigan State) each recorded multi-hit games for Kenosha.

Green Bay 6, Duluth 5

The Green Bay Bullfrogs walked off on Thursday night in a 6-5 victory over the Duluth Huskies. Duluth took a 5-4 advantage after scoring twice in the top of the eighth inning, but the Bullfrogs scored twice in the bottom of the ninth for the win. With two outs and the bases loaded, Jonah Davis (University of California) walked to tie the game at five, and Hill Alexander (Midland College) singled in the next at bat to plate the game-winning run. Green Bay had balanced hitting throughout the lineup. The Bullfrogs finished the game with 10 hits, and eight players recorded at least one hit in the win.

La Crosse 11, Willmar 7

The La Crosse Loggers took an early 7-0 lead in the third inning and held on to beat the Willmar Stingers on the road on Thursday night. Willmar fought back and chipped away at the lead throughout the game. The Stingers cut the deficit to one in the seventh with an 8-7 score. La Crosse scored three insurance runs in the top of the ninth to pull away for the victory. Willmar outhit La Crosse 16-9 in a loss. La Crosse leftfielder Grant Fennell (Nevada) finished 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored for the Loggers.

Rockford 6, Wisconsin Rapids 5

The Rockford Rivets had a five-run lead and beat the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters 6-5 on the road Thursday night. Rockford scored twice in the top of the fourth inning and added three more in the fifth to take a 5-0 advantage. The Rafters scored twice in the fifth and cut the lead to three with another run in the eighth. The Rivets picked up a big insurance run in the top of the ninth to make it a 6-3 advantage. Wisconsin Rapids scored twice in the bottom half of the ninth but were unable to plate another run in the loss.

Friday's Schedule

Kalamazoo @ Madison (5:00 PM) – Game 1

Kalamazoo @ Madison (7:35 PM) – Game 2

Duluth @ Green Bay (7:05 PM)

Waterloo @ Mankato (7:05 PM)

Kenosha @ Battle Creek (7:05 PM)

Eau Claire @ St. Cloud (7:05 PM)

Rochester @ Thunder Bay (7:05 PM)

La Crosse @ Willmar (7:05 PM)

Rockford @ Wisconsin Rapids (7:05 PM)

Lakeshore @ Wisconsin (7:05 PM)

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