The day featured several standout performances and dramatic finishes across the league. The Eau Claire Express secured the Great Plains East second-half championship and punched their ticket to the playoffs, while teams across the league battled for key victories. The Rochester Honkers completed a thrilling comeback with a six-run ninth inning, the Minot Hot Tots erupted for 20 hits in a high-scoring win, and the Royal Oak Leprechauns continued their strong run with a doubleheader sweep over Battle Creek.
Royal Oak 10, Battle Creek 5
The Leprechauns rallied from an early deficit with a five-run sixth inning and a five-run eighth to defeat the Battle Jacks 10–5. Royal Oak collected 15 hits and scored 10 unanswered runs after trailing 4–0 early to secure the comeback victory. Mason Barth (University of Notre Dame) went 2-for-5 including a home run, driving in two runs and stealing one base. Connor Larkin (University of Oklahoma) went 3-for-5 including a double, scoring twice. Carson Raether (Miami University (OH)) went 2-for-5 including a home run, scoring twice. Andrew Everson (Michigan State University) earned the win, throwing 4.1 innings with five strikeouts while allowing three hits, three walks, and one run.
Kalamazoo 11, Richmond 1
The Growlers cruised to an 11–1 victory over the Flying Mummies. Kalamazoo collected 13 hits while holding Richmond to one run to secure the dominant win. Logan Tribble (University of Notre Dame) went 2-for-5 including a home run, recording four RBI and two runs scored. Josh Campbell (University of Michigan) went 3-for-4 with two RBI, one run scored, and two stolen bases. Brock Sell (Stanford University) went 2-for-4, scoring three times, driving in one run, and stealing one base. Isaac Scavarda (Hillsdale College) earned the win, throwing six scoreless innings with five strikeouts while allowing six hits and four walks.
Rochester 7, Thunder Bay 6
The Honkers rallied from a five-run deficit with a six-run ninth inning to stun the Border Cats 7–6. Seth Thompson (Creighton University) had a day at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a grand slam and a pair of doubles. Angel Santiago (University of South Alabama) went 3-for-5 with two RBI and one run scored. Mike Maanum (Crown College) went 1-for-1 with one RBI, two runs scored, and two stolen bases. For Thunder Bay, Alex Kean (University of NC at Asheville) went 3-for-4 including a home run, driving in two runs. Stevie Waters (University of British Columbia) went 2-for-4 including a double, recording three runs scored and two RBI. Gavin Simurdiak (Johns Hopkins University) earned the win, throwing two scoreless innings while allowing two hits. Vaughn Johnson (UW-River Falls) earned the save, throwing one perfect inning to close out the game.
Royal Oak 6, Battle Creek 4 (DH Sweep)
The Leprechauns jumped out to an early lead and held off a late Battle Jacks rally to secure a 6–4 victory. Royal Oak scored five runs through the first four innings and withstood a three-run sixth from Battle Creek to hold on for the win. Oliver Service (Marshall University) went 1-for-2 with a home run, recording three RBI and two runs scored. Connor Larkin (University of Oklahoma) went 3-for-4 including a double, scoring twice. For Battle Creek, Brendan Thompson (Cal State Bakersfield) went 2-for-3 including a home run, recording two RBI, two runs scored, and one stolen base. Jake Stedman (Southeastern University (FL)) went 3-for-4 including a double and scored once. Spencer Boynton (Valparaiso University) earned the win, throwing seven innings with eight strikeouts while allowing six hits, three earned runs, and one walk.
Green Bay 8, Wisconsin Rapids 6
The Rockers erupted for seven runs in the sixth inning to take control and held off a late Rafters rally to secure an 8–6 victory. Coleman Lewis (Georgia Tech) went 1-for-3 with three RBI and one run scored. Ben Fishel (Columbia University) went 1-for-2 with one RBI, one run scored, and one stolen base. For Wisconsin Rapids, Kedren Kinzie (University of Hawaii) went 1-for-5 with a double, driving in three runs. Danny Gavin (Butler University) went 2-for-5 including a double, recording two RBI and one stolen base. Austin Grube (University of Wisconsin-Parkside) earned the win, throwing 5.2 innings with four strikeouts while allowing six hits, three walks, and two runs.
Wausau 5, Kenosha 4
The Woodchucks rallied late to defeat the Kingfish 5–4 in a back-and-forth matchup. Wausau tied the game with two runs in the fifth inning before scoring the go-ahead run in the ninth to secure the victory. Caleb Karll (University of Montevallo) delivered the go-ahead run in the ninth and went 1-for-4 with a home run, finishing with three RBI. Keagen Jirschele (South Dakota State University) went 2-for-5, scoring once and stealing one base. For Kenosha, Will Matuszak (Boston College) went 2-for-4 including a home run, recording two RBI and two runs scored. Pete Jezerinac (Kennesaw State University) earned the win, throwing 2.1 scoreless, hitless innings with four strikeouts while allowing one walk.
Mankato 5, St. Cloud 2
The MoonDogs overcame an early deficit with a three-run third inning and added insurance runs in the fifth and seventh to defeat the Rox 5–2. Mankato’s pitching held St. Cloud scoreless after the first inning to secure the comeback victory. Kyle Hvidsten (Liberty University) went 1-for-4 with three RBI, one run scored, and one stolen base. Sean Griggs (Monmouth University) went 2-for-5 including a double, recording two runs scored and one RBI. For St. Cloud, Colton Rother (University of Kansas) went 1-for-4 with a home run, driving in two runs. Logan Gross (Colorado Mesa University) earned the win, throwing seven innings with seven strikeouts while allowing seven hits and two runs. Blake Gordon (Palomar CC) earned the save, throwing two scoreless innings with one strikeout while allowing two hits and two walks.
Traverse City 7, Rockford 1
The Pit Spitters used a strong all-around performance to defeat the Rivets 7–1. Traverse City scored twice in the third and sixth innings before adding three more runs in the eighth, while holding Rockford to just three hits in the victory. Noah Gerrick (Wofford College) went 3-for-4 including a home run, driving in three runs. Sean Martinez (Boston College) went 3-for-5 including a double, scoring twice. Ethan Guerra (University of Arizona) went 2-for-5 including a home run, recording two RBI. Mason Compton (Wofford College) earned the win, throwing five innings with five strikeouts while allowing one hit, one run, and one walk. Ty Jenkins (Davenport University) earned the save, throwing four scoreless innings with four strikeouts while allowing two hits.
Waterloo 10, La Crosse 2
The Bucks broke the game open with four runs in the fifth inning and pulled away for a 10–2 victory over the Loggers. Collin Brightwell (Vanderbilt University) went 2-for-5 including a double, recording two runs scored, one RBI, and two stolen bases. Larry Edwards (McNeese State University) went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and three stolen bases. Jake Slade (Murray State University) went 1-for-3 with a double, driving in two runs, scoring once, and stealing one base. Nate Berzonski (Mount St. Mary’s University (MD)) earned the win, throwing seven innings with six strikeouts while allowing five hits and one earned run.
Minot 14, Bismarck 10
The Hot Tots used a huge offensive performance to defeat the Larks 14–10 in a high-scoring battle. Minot erupted for six runs in the fifth and four more in the sixth, collecting 20 hits in the victory. Alex Altmann (University of New Mexico) went 2-for-5 with a home run and a triple, driving in four runs and scoring twice. Adrian Dominguez (University of New Orleans) went 3-for-6, scoring four times, driving in two runs, and stealing one base. Micah McCoy (Illinois Central CC) went 3-for-6 including a double, recording three RBI and one run scored. Aiden Yochim (Rochester Tech CC) went 3-for-5 with two RBI and one stolen base. Jaxon Goldberg (Creighton University) went 3-for-6 including a pair of doubles, recording one RBI and one run scored. For Bismarck, Karter Scott (Miles CC) went 1-for-5 with a home run, driving in three runs. Will Husemann (Concordia University-St. Paul) went 2-for-4 including a double, scoring twice and driving in one run. Lance Mittelman (Alcorn State University) earned the win, throwing 4.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts while allowing three walks and two hits.
Eau Claire 9, Duluth 3
The Express overcame an early deficit with a five-run third inning and pulled away for a 9–3 victory over the Huskies. Matthew Maulik (University of St. Thomas (MN)) had a day at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a pair of home runs, driving in four runs. Adam Salazar (Hope International University) went 1-for-4 with a home run, recording two RBI. Philip Cheong (Stanford University) scored twice and stole three bases. For Duluth, Andrew Ermis (TCU) went 3-for-4 including a solo home run. Jack Haferkamp (UC Santa Barbara) went 1-for-3 with a solo home run. Finley Spicer (St. Scholastica) went 1-for-4 with a solo home run. Sawyer Hoffman (Winona State University) earned the win, throwing six innings with nine strikeouts while allowing seven hits and three runs.
Madison 7, Lakeshore 6 (10 Innings)
The Mallards rallied late and scored the go-ahead run in the 10th inning to defeat the Chinooks 7–6 in extra innings. Madison collected 16 hits and overcame multiple deficits, including a late Lakeshore lead, to secure the comeback victory. Nate Novinska (University of Illinois) went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles, recording two runs scored and one RBI. Jonah Weathers (University of Louisville) went 3-for-5 including a pair of doubles, driving in one run. Davis Hamilton (University of Minnesota) went 4-for-5 including a double, scoring twice. Brayden Zilis (Illinois State University) went 3-for-5 with two RBI. For Lakeshore, Nick Allred (St. Mary’s College (CA)) went 3-for-5 including a home run, recording three RBI and two runs scored. Eamonn Mulhern (St. Cloud State University) earned the win, throwing three scoreless innings with two strikeouts while allowing two hits and two walks. Brayden Kottschade (Southeastern (IA) CC) earned the save, throwing one scoreless inning with one strikeout while allowing one hit.
Fond du Lac 10, Minnesota 3
The Dock Spiders used a seven-run seventh inning to pull away from the Mud Puppies and secure a 10–3 victory. Carter Christenson (Xavier University) went 1-for-3 with a double, driving in two runs and scoring once. Joey Arend (Xavier University) went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and scored twice. For Minnesota, Holden Peacock (Macalester College) went 3-for-5, scoring once and stealing one base. Landon Jasper (Kirkwood CC) went 2-for-3 including a double, scoring once. Nolan Meis (Southeastern (IA) CC) earned the win, throwing 1.2 innings while allowing three walks, two hits, and one run.
Badlands 6, Willmar 4
The Big Sticks jumped out to an early lead and held off a late Stingers rally to secure a 6–4 victory. Cougar Cooke (Arkansas State University) went 2-for-4 including a home run, driving in three runs and stealing one base. Gavyn Schlotterback (University of Kansas) went 1-for-3 with a double, recording two RBI and one stolen base. For Willmar, Esteban Sepulveda (UC Riverside) went 2-for-4 including a solo home run. Collin Maloney (Arkansas State University) earned the win, throwing five innings with four strikeouts while allowing seven hits, three walks, and two runs. Gavyn Schlotterback (University of Kansas) earned the save, throwing one scoreless inning with one strikeout while allowing one hit and one walk.
Friday’s Schedule
Kenosha @ Richmond (6:35 PM ET)
Kalamazoo @ Royal Oak (6:35 PM ET)
Battle Creek @ Traverse City (7:05 PM ET)
Badlands @ Mankato (6:35 PM CT)
Thunder Bay @ Duluth (6:35 PM CT)
La Crosse @ Rochester (6:35 PM CT)
Bismarck @ Willmar (6:35 PM CT)
Green Bay @ Madison (6:35 PM CT)
Fond du Lac @ Wisconsin Rapids (6:35 PM CT)
Rockford @ Lakeshore (6:35 PM CT)
Waterloo @ Eau Claire (6:35 PM CT)
Minnesota @ Wausau (6:35 PM CT)
Minot @ St. Cloud (7:05 PM CT)