La Crosse, Wisc.- La Crosse gives up 16 runs on 17 hits by a crushing offensive display by the Willmar Stingers.
Luke Becker (Kentucky) led off the Stingers’ 2nd inning with a walk. Eddie Estrada (Minnesota) brought Luke in from 1st on a double to the wall in left-center. Estrada scored during the next at-bat on a Kole Cottam (Kentucky) single.
Willmar scored again in their next inning. After Danny Pardo (Montevallo) walked with one out, Greg Lambert (Southern Illinois) singled to right field. Logger right fielder Grant Fennell (Nevada) misplayed the ball and was charged with an error that moved the runners to 2nd and 3rd base with one out. Justin Toerner (Cal State Northridge) brought in Pardo with a sacrifice fly to left field.
With one out and Justin Wylie (San Diego State) at 1st base, Lorenzo Hampton Jr. (California) singled to left field. After the throw to 3rd base, Hampton Jr. snuck into 2nd base. Drawing the throw to 2nd, Willmar second baseman Luke Becker dropped the ball, allowing Wylie to score.
Logger starter Zach Kesterson was close to his 2nd straight clean inning, but Greg Lambert homered over the tall left field wall. Justin Toerner hit an even bigger home run into the trees behind the “Home Run Haven” in right field. Another run crossed, making the Willmar lead 7-1.
The Stingers’ offense continued to pour in with 5 runs on 4 hits in the 6th, putting the game well out of reach. Mason McCoy (Iowa) hit a solo home run in the 9th, but it had no effect on the decision as Willmar easily took the game 16-3.
Tyler Hanson (Minnesota) kept the La Crosse offense in check. He took the win (2-0) with 6 innings pitched, giving up 2 runs (1 earned) on 7 hits. He walked 3 and struck out 3 more.
Zach Kesterson (Duke) took the loss for the Loggers (1-2). He went 4.2 innings, giving up 7 runs on 8 hits, with 2 walks and 4 strikeouts.
La Crosse drops their 4th straight game, falling to 14-12. Willmar gets back to .500 ball with the win (13-13). The Loggers will go on vacation in Waterloo, Iowa to try to get back to their winning ways against the Bucks. La Crosse plays 3 games in Waterloo, and the final game in the Lumberyard. Game 1 of the series starts tomorrow night at 7:05 pm. Catch the game on the Loggers Radio Network, Eagle 102.7 or the Loggers Radio App. The pregame show starts at 6:30.