The Madison Mallards needed a win and Kalamazoo loss to clinch the first half title in the South. Madison defeated Green Bay by six and Kalamazoo lost to Fond du Lac by three to secure the Mallards a spot in the playoffs. Duluth on the other hand bounced back and continues to hold a game lead over just Bismarck now in the North.
Rochester 8, La Crosse 4
The Rochester Honkers scored four in the fifth which proved to be enough to defeat the La Crosse Loggers 8-4. Both teams traded runs in the opening inning. Alex McGarry (Oregon State) hit an RBI single for the Honkers while Harrison Freed (Butler) did the same for the Loggers. Rochester got four in the fifth to take the lead which was capped off by Matt Hardy (UC Riverside) knocking in two from a single. Nate Webb (UC Riverside) knocked in two for the Honkers in the sixth while La Crosse put up one in the seventh. Webb knocked in one more in the eighth, but Freed went deep for two in the bottom half. Chad Tworek (Keiser) threw six and gave up just one on five hits for his fourth win.
Eau Claire 1, Bismarck 5
The Bismarck Larks put up three in the seventh which was enough to defeat the Eau Claire Express 5-1. The Larks got an unearned run in the opening inning. Eau Claire tied it in the fifth on an RBI single by Scott Ogrin (Cal Poly), but Michael Farnell (Murray State) went deep for Bismarck in the sixth. The Larks then got three in the seventh with Farnell knocking in another run. Cruz Daddario (Cal State-Northridge) threw seven, allowed just one on seven hits and two walks while striking out three for his fourth win.
Duluth 5, Mankato 2
The Duluth Huskies scored an insurance run late in the ninth and defeated the Mankato MoonDogs 5-2. The Huskies scored first in the opening inning when Chris Gilbody (Geogetown) knocked in a run from a double. Duluth scored two more from a pair of errors in the fourth, but Kyle Cuellar (UCLA) and Kyle MacDonald (Arkansas State) led off the fourth with long balls. Gilbody hit an RBI single in the fifth and Duluth scored one more in the ninth from another error. Tim Holdgrafer (Cal Poly Pomona) threw the final three innings scoreless for the Huskies to convert his first save.
Willmar 7, St. Cloud 6 (11 Innings)
The Willmar Stingers hit the eventual game-winner in the top of the 11th to defeat the St. Cloud Rox. The Rox got one in the third from an RBI ground out, but John Trousdale (Alabama) went deep for two in the fourth to give Willmar the lead. Nic Hernandez (Cal Poly Pomona) homered and drove in three for St. Cloud in the fifth. St. Cloud then tied it in the sixth which was capped off by Ryan Weisenberg (Georgetown) hitting a two-run home run. The Stingers got one in the eighth, but St. Cloud forced extra innings in the bottom of the ninth. Matt Rudick (San Diego State) then went deep in the 11th as St. Cloud went down in-order to end the game.
Green Bay 6, Madison 12
The Madison Mallards went off in the second and built a lead to defeat the Green Bay Bullfrogs 12-5 which clinched them first place of the first half in the South. The Mallards jumped on the board quick with six in the second. Max Hewitt (Oklahoma State) led the inning with a two-run double. The Frogs got a pair in the in the third which was started by Alejandro Gonzalez (Hillsborough CC) hitting an RBI triple. Jayse McLean (NDSU) put up three more in the third for Madison on a home run. Blaise Maris (Florida Tech) led off the fourth for Green Bay with a solo shot. The Frogs got another in the sixth on an RBI single from Maris. They got another in the seventh and eighth, but Madison put up another three as McLean went deep again. The Northwoods League leader in saves, Trace Norkus (North Florida) came in and picked up his ninth save.
Kenosha 12, Wisconsin Rapids 11
The Kenosha Kingfish took the lead in the ninth with an impressive 10 runs and defeated the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters 12-11. Jack Yalowitz (Illinois) put Kenosha on the board in the opening inning with a two-run single. Rapids took the lead in the fifth with four as Jack-Thomas Wold (UNLV) drove in three from a double. The Rafters put up seven in the sixth when Wold drove in another two from a double. The Growlers then turned it on and got the lead back in the top of the ninth. Yalowitz led off things with a homer. He drove in another on a bases loaded hit by pitch while Scott Durule (Jacksonville) knocked in three from a single and double. Josh Serio (UW-Milwaukee) then came in and retired the side in-order for his fifth save.
Lakeshore 5, Wisconsin 10
The Wisconsin Woodchucks scored early and often and defeated the Lakeshore Chinooks 10-5. The Chinooks got on the board in the second from three runs as Jim Govern (Eastern Illinois) hit a two-run double. The Chucks tied things in the third when Jaren Shelby (State College of Florida) homered and Nick Loftin (Baylor) knocked in two from a single. Wisconsin got another three in the fourth, but Lakeshore got one more in the fifth. Wisconsin got a pair in the sixth as Loftin drove in another from a single. The Chinooks got one more in the seventh, the Woodchucks got two in the eighth which was enough for them to win the game.
Rockford 4, Battle Creek 7
The Battle Creek Bombers used two innings to get ahead and defeat the Rockford Rivets 7-4. Rockford got two in the opening inning from two RBI singles by Wyatt Mascarella (St. John’s) and Hal Hughes (LSU). The Bombers got four in the fourth when Jalen Thomas (Madonna) cleared the bases from a double and later scored. The Rivets tied it in the sixth, but the Bombers got three more in the seventh which was capped off by Connor Bailey (Willamette) singling in a run. The final 3.1 were shut down by Jordan Rhodes (McDaniel) picking up the win and Noah Reed (Cornerstone) converting his second save.
Fond du Lac 5, Kalamazoo 2
The Fond du Lac Dock Spiders used a big third inning to take the lead and defeat the Kalamazoo Growlers 5-2. Fondy jumped on the board first in the third when Alex Erro (Northwestern) went deep. The Growlers got one in the fifth, but Cole Zabowski (Ole Miss) homered to lead off the top of the sixth. The Spiders got another in the seventh as Michael Hope (Shippensburg) threw a scoreless ninth and picked up his second save.
Waterloo 7, Thunder Bay 8 (14 Innings)
The Thunder Bay Border Cats battled it out in extra innings with the Waterloo Bucks and won the game 8-7. The Bucks got one in the opening inning from an error. Mark Vierling (Missouri) singled in a run to tie the game for the Cats. Tate Samuelson (Cal Poly) knocked in two from a single in the third for Waterloo, but Thunder Bay got one in the bottom half. The Border Cats went up two in the fourth which started from Vierling knocking in two more on a single. The Bucks came within one in the fifth and then tied it in the seventh. The game went into extra innings and the two teams traded runs in the 12th. They did the same in the 13th, but then Cam Pearcey (Coastal Carolina) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the 14th which won the game for the Cats.
Schedule for July 1:
Eau Claire @ Bismarck (1:05 PM)
Rockford @ Battle Creek (1:05 PM)
La Crosse @ Rochester (1:05 PM)
Madison @ Green Bay (1:05 PM)
Waterloo @ Thunder Bay (1:35 PM)
Lakeshore @ Wisconsin (3:05 PM)
Fond du Lac @ Kalamazoo (3:05 PM)
Kenosha @ Wisconsin Rapids (4:05 PM)
Duluth @ Mankato (6:05 PM)
St. Cloud @ Willmar (6:05 PM)
