LA CROSSE, WI – Sunday’s game was scheduled to begin at 5:05 PM. It rained intermittently throughout the morning and early afternoon, but the real pouring came right before the Loggers were set to do battle with the Mud Puppies. The game would get pushed back to a start time of 7:35, but the late start only gave the Loggers more time to get ready to dominate in this one.
The first and only run for the Mud Puppies came in the first inning. After the first three Minnesota batters reached on walks, a sacrifice fly by Teige Lethert drove in one. From then on, it was all Lumbermen.
The Loggers answered right back in the bottom of the first. Gabe D’Arcy (San Diego) reached on an error, Ben Zeigler-Namoa (Hawaii) singled, and Seth Cox (Memphis) drove in the pair with a single of his own. After one, the score was 2-1 in favor of La Crosse.
The Loggers would score two more in the fourth inning with RBI singles from Mitch Wood (Yavapai College) and Gable Mitchell (Iowa) making the score 4-1. The score would not stay there long as the Loggers poured it on (pun intended) in the fifth inning. Seth Cox doubled to drive in one before three runs would score on two bases-loaded walks and a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch. The fifth run of the inning would come as Mitch Wood ran home on a passed ball. The game was blown wide-open with a score of 9-1.
The exclamation point on the game would come in the seventh inning as, with the score 10-1, Gabe D’Arcy pummeled his first home run as a Logger on a 2-2 count to extend the lead to 12-1. The Lumbermen would add on two more in the inning, making the score 14-1.
The rain caused the game to start late, but it also claimed the last four outs of the contest. As the end of the game neared, the downpour picked up again. After a few conversations between both managers and the officiating crew, the rest of the game was called and the Loggers secured a 14-1 victory in the eighth inning. For the fans that decided to weather the storm and stick with the Loggers, they surely were not cheated of their time.
Happy Father’s Day!
