LA CROSSE, WI — The La Crosse Loggers secured a decisive 13-5 victory over the Minnesota Mud Puppies at Copeland Park, witnessed by 2,506 enthusiastic fans.
Loggers’ starter Jah Acevedo (Elgin CC) delivered a solid performance, pitching four innings, allowing two runs on six hits, and striking out seven.
On the opposing side, Mud Puppies’ starter Thane Meiners (Upper Iowa) struggled, lasting only two innings and surrendering four runs on four hits.
The Loggers took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning with an RBI groundout from Luke Anderson (BYU).
The Mud Puppies quickly responded in the top of the second, tying the game with a solo home run to right by Cooper Nicholson (Iowa Central CC).
In the bottom of the second, Sebastian David (Stanford) put the Loggers back on top with a two-run double to center, followed by an RBI single from Elijah Ickes (Hawaii), extending the lead to 4-1.
Nicholson continued to keep the Mud Puppies in the game, driving in a run with a double to right in the top of the third, narrowing the score to 4-2.
The Mud Puppies rallied to tie the game at 4-4 in the top of the seventh, courtesy of an RBI single from Caden Headlee (UW-Milwaukee) and an error that allowed Gavyn Schacher (Maryville) to score.
However, the Loggers responded immediately in the bottom of the inning with a four-run outburst. Tyler Smith (St. Peters) delivered a crucial two-RBI double, Mitch Wood (Iowa) drew an RBI walk, and Kanon Sundgren (Weatherford) added an RBI single, giving the Loggers a commanding 8-4 lead.
La Crosse sealed their victory with a five-run eighth inning. Case Sanderson and Sundgren each contributed RBI singles, while Sebastian David added a sacrifice fly, and Ickes drove in two more with a single, making it 13-4.
The Mud Puppies managed to score one final run in the top of the ninth on an RBI walk from Will Smoot, but it was too little, too late.
With this win, the Loggers improve to 33-36, while the Mud Puppies fall to 4-28 on the season. The two teams will face off again tomorrow at Copeland Park for the second game of the series, with the first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m.