The Mankato MoonDogs defeated the La Crosse Loggers tonight to force a tight race in the North. Duluth currently leads Willmar and La Crosse by a half game while the MoonDogs sit one game out. Kenosha has won three in a row and hold a 1.5 game lead while Madison leads by three in the overall standings.

 

Battle Creek 4, Green Bay 3 (10 Innings) (Game 1)

The Battle Creek Bombers tied it in the ninth and won it in the tenth as they defeated the Green Bay Bullfrogs 4-3. The Bombers scored its first in the opening inning on a wild pitch. The Frogs tied it in the third when Andre Antone (UC Irvine) hit an RBI single. The Bombers retook the lead on an RBI ground out. Green Bay then took the lead with two in the sixth on an RBI single by Keaton Smith (Nevada) and an error. Zach Gartner (East Texas Baptist) tied it in the ninth from an RBI single and then Alec Cargin (Wofford) doubled in the eventual game-winner in the tenth.

Kalamazoo 5, Madison 3

The Kalamazoo Growlers took the lead in the top of the ninth and defeated the Madison Mallards 5-3. Madison got a pair in the second when Andrew Baker (Florida) started things with an RBI single. Cole OConnor (Dartmouth) threw the first five scoreless for the Mallards on just five hits while striking out five. Kyle Virbitsky (Penn State) threw six innings, allowed just the two, one earned while striking out four. The Growlers tied it in the eighth on a home run by Zach Daniels (Tennessee). Tyler Plantier (Richmond) gave the lead back to Madison with a dinger. Kalamazoo then retook the lead for good with three as it started with Jonathan Foster (Florida State) knocking in two from a single.

Eau Claire 6, Bismarck 8

The Bismarck Larks used the first five innings to build a lead and defeat the Eau Claire Express 8-6. The Express got on the board first with three which was started with Cody Milligan (Oklahoma State) hitting a dinger to start the game. The Larks got an unearned run in the second and then another from Tristen Carranza (New Mexico State) starting the third with a homer. Bismarck took the lead in the fourth with three as Christian Montes (Stony Brook) began the scoring with a two-run triple. Eau Claire tied in the fifth, but Bismarck retook the lead in the bottom half when Brandon Barna (Alcorn State) Knocked in two from a triple. The Express managed one in the seventh, but Corey Treyes (Coppin State) came in for the final two and picked up his first save.

Fond du Lac 5, Kenosha 10

The Kenosha Kingfish scored big in the second and defeated the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders 10-5. The Kingfish plated nine runs in the second. There were two errors, Cade Cabbiness (Oklahoma State) hit a two-run single and two runs scored while Jack Weiller (Virginia) hit a double. Zac Taylor (Illinois) homered in two in the third for Fondy and then they got three in the fifth when Duncan Hewitt (Butler) led off the inning with a dinger. The Kingfish got one more in the eighth on a wild pitch and that proved to be the final score.

Mankato 7, La Crosse 5

The Mankato MoonDogs used a big seventh to pull ahead and defeat the La Crosse Loggers 7-5. La Crosse got its first in the opening inning on an RBI single by Mike Rothenberg (Duke). Mankato scored its first in the second on an error. The MoonDogs took the lead in the fourth with two. The Loggers retook the lead in the fourth which was powered by Armani Smith (UCSB) hitting an RBI single. The MoonDogs put up four in the seventh to go up three as it was capped off by RJ Teijeiro (UCLA) hitting a two-run double. The Loggers did manage an RBI single in the ninth by Rothenberg, but the next guy grounded out to end the game.

Rockford 10, Wisconsin Rapids 2

The Rockford Rivets used a big second inning and defeated the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters 10-2. The Rivets big five-run second inning started with Parker Bates (Louisiana Tech) clearing the bases from a double. The Rivets got a pair in the third on a double by Cade Bunnell (Indiana). Bates put up another two to start a three-run fifth with a single. Jimmy Burnette (Illinois) threw six scoreless, allowed just one hit and five walks while striking out six. Rapids got on the board finally in the ninth which was started by Bret Fehr (SIUE) going deep, but the side was retired to end the game.

St. Cloud 2, Thunder Bay 0

The St. Cloud Rox threw two pitchers in their 2-0 shutout victory over the Thunder Bay Border Cats. Drew Gooch (UTA) threw six innings, allowed just one run on six hits and three walks while striking out six. The Rox managed its first in the seventh on an RBI fielder’s choice. Jack Cushing (Georgetown) threw eight scoreless for the Rox, gave up just six hits and three walks while striking out three. Hance Smith (Cal) gave the Rox its second run on an RBI single in the ninth as Erik Martinez (Cal) converted his second save.

Lakeshore 3, Wisconsin 11

The Wisconsin Woodchucks used the third and eighth to defeat the Lakeshore Chinooks 11-3. The Chucks got four in the third which was powered by Reese Alexiades (Pepperdine) hitting a two-run shot. They got another in the fourth, but a wild pitch and two-run double by Jim Goven (Eastern Illinois) put Lakeshore on the board. Wisconsin got another in the seventh and then five in the eighth from an error and another two-run hit from Alexiades as the Chucks bullpen ended the game with no further damage.

Waterloo 4, Duluth 12

The Duluth Huskies used a big third inning to pull ahead big and defeat the Waterloo Bucks 12-4. The Huskies got one in the second when General McArthur (Missouri Baptist) went deep. Duluth got another five in the third which was powered by Harrison Moore (Augustana) doubling in two. The Huskies got one in the fourth and then another four in the sixth as McArthur drove in one from a single. Duluth put up another single run in the eighth. Troy Newell (Western Kentucky) threw 7.2 innings scoreless on one hit and three walks while striking out nine for Duluth. Waterloo finally put four across in the ninth. Brendan Hueth (St. Josephs) started things with an RBI double and later scored, but the third out was recorded and the game ended after Waterloo batted around.

Green Bay 4, Battle Creek 3 (7 Innings) (Game 2)

The Green Bay Bullfrogs managed to fend off the Battle Creek Bombers in the seventh and win the game 4-3. The Frogs got one in the opening inning on an RBI single by Andre Antone (UC Irvine). The Bombers then took the lead in the bottom half from an base knocks by Jordan Swiss (Saginaw Valley State) and Connor Bailey (Willamette). The Frogs got two base knocks themselves in the fifth from Blaise Maris (Florida Tech) and Adrian Damla (UC Irvine). Both teams traded runs in the seventh, but Green Bay held on to its one-run lead for the win.

Willmar 12, Rochester 10

The Willmar Stingers battled all game and defeated the Rochester Honkers 12-10. The Stingers scored four in the first which was capped off by Davis Elliot (North Alabama) knocking in one from a single as the second one came on an error. The Honkers then took the lead in the bottom half as Alex McGarry (Oregon State) went deep for two and Casey Dunlap (Point Loma Nazarene) hit a two-run single. The Stingers retook the lead in the second as John Trousdale (Alabama) started it all with an RBI single. Rochester got two runs back in the third from a dinger by Matt Hardy (UC Riverside). Both teams traded runs in the sixth as the Honkers maintained the lead with a solo shot by Christian Robinson (Stanford). The Stingers then took the lead from a two-run shot by Trousdale in the seventh and then one more in the ninth which proved to be the final score.

 

Schedule for July 29:

Willmar @ Rochester (1:05 PM)
Green Bay @ Battle Creek (1:05 PM)

Eau Claire @ Bismarck (1:05 PM)

St. Cloud @ Thunder Bay (1:35 PM)

Lakeshore @ Wisconsin (3:05 PM)

Waterloo @ Duluth (3:05 PM)

Rockford @ Wisconsin Rapids (4:05 PM)

Kalamazoo @ Madison (4:05 PM)

Fond du Lac @ Kenosha (4:05 PM)

La Crosse @ Mankato (6:05 PM)