LA CROSSE, WI – The La Crosse Loggers were defeated by the Minnesota Mud Puppies, 15-9, in a high-scoring contest at Copeland Park, witnessed by a crowd of 2,750 fans.
Logger starter Brandon Stanley (Maritime College SUNY) went 5 innings, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits, and striking out 2.
The Mud Puppies starter Ryan Ohm (Iowa Central CC) went 4 innings, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits, and striking out 3.
The Mud Puppies struck first, taking an early 1-0 lead with a solo home run from Brock Larson (Minnesota-Crookston).
However, the Loggers quickly responded in the bottom of the first inning. Luke Anderson (BYU) brought home a run with an RBI groundout, and thanks to two defensive errors by the Mud Puppies, RJ Hamilton (Vanderbilt) and Case Sanderson (Nebraska) crossed the plate, giving the Loggers a 3-1 advantage.
The Loggers extended their lead in the bottom of the second inning when Elijah Ickes (Hawaii) scored on another error, and Sanderson drove in Gable Mitchell (Iowa) with a sacrifice fly, making it 5-1 in favor of the home team.
The Mud Puppies narrowed the gap in the top of the fourth inning with a three-run homer by Cooper Nicholson (Iowa Central CC), bringing the score to 5-4.
The Loggers countered in the bottom of the fifth inning, putting up four runs, including a three-run homer by Zach Wadas (TCU). Ian Collier (Texas State) also scored on an error, extending the Loggers’ lead to 9-4.
In the top of the sixth inning, the Mud Puppies continued to fight back, with Tomas Lee (Concordia St. Paul) hitting a three-run home run, closing the gap to 9-7.
The Mud Puppies then tied the game in the top of the seventh with an RBI single from Gavyn Schacher (Maryville) and an RBI groundout by Carden Headlee (UW-Milwaukee).
The game slipped away from the Loggers in the eighth inning when reliever Dylan Lapic (Kentucky Western) walked in three runs, and Tomas Lee added an RBI groundout, giving the Mud Puppies a commanding 13-9 lead.
The Mud Puppies tacked on two more runs in the ninth inning, one on an RBI hit-by-pitch from Teige Lether (UW-Milwaukee) and another on a wild pitch, making the final score 15-9.
With this loss, the La Crosse Loggers end the season with a 32-37 record, while the Minnesota Mud Puppies improve to 5-27 overall.
The Loggers will now turn their attention to the playoffs, where they will face the Duluth Huskies in the first round. Game 1 is scheduled for tomorrow at Copeland Park, with the first pitch set for 5:05 p.m.