The La Crosse Loggers lost a close contest last night to the Eau Claire Express, who remain in first place in the Great Plains East by a comfortable 3 games.
Mickey Thompson (San Jose State) made his 3rd start for the Lumberman, tossing a solid 5.0 innings while surrendering 3 runs. The southpaw had his swing-and-miss stuff working, striking out 7 batters. However, he ran into trouble in the 5th, when Reed Latimer (Montevallo) and Jake Sapien (Stanford) each drove in runs.
Sam Mettert (Wabash Valley CC) then appeared in relief. He was able to keep the Express off board until the 9th inning, when he found himself in a bases-loaded jam with the winning runs on base.
The Loggers called upon Jake Gebb (UC-Riverside) to put out the fire, but was unable to do so as Sam Kuchinski (Montevallo) was hit by a pitch, scoring Cadyn Schwabe (North Dakota State) in walk-off fashion.
Carson Hornung (South Carolina) was a bright spot in a tough defeat. He went 2-for-4 with a 2-run home run in the 1st inning, keeping his on-base streak alive at 28 games. Ronald Sweeny III (Minnesota) also hit a solo shot in the 6th; his 2nd of the summer.
Both teams will face off again tonight, this time at Copeland Park in La Crosse, WI. It will be “Fish Fry Friday” at the ballpark, where fans can receive a sandwich for $5 or a meal for $10. There will also be “Happy Hour” live music with Ryan Sauter presented by Spenser Nickelatti of OneTrust Real Estate.
Gates open at 5:35pm CT and the first pitch is set for 6:35pm CT. Fans can watch live at https://northwoodsleague.com/watch-nwl/ or listen live at https://mixlr.com/lacrosseloggers.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 29th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, over 295 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.