La Crosse, Wisc. – The La Crosse Loggers walk-off the Eau Claire Express in 6-5 win at Copeland Park.
Brayden Olson (St. Thomas) started strong on the mound for the Loggers, opening the game with a scoreless inning. A solo homerun would put the Express up early in the second, but the Loggers would snatch the lead in the bottom of the third inning. Stephen Chucka (Central Florida) would bring the first run in on an RBI single, followed by an RBI groundout from his college teammate, Sebastian Hurtado (Central Florida), and a RBI double from Mana Lau Kong (Hawaii), putting the Loggers up 3-1.
Brayden Olson would go 5 strong innings, only giving up the one run, striking out 6 in the process. The Express would score runs in the sixth and seventh innings, tying the score heading into the bottom of the 7th. The Loggers would retake the lead as Eli Small (Kent State) would bring in Chucka on an RBI single.
The back and forth did not stop there, as Eau Claire would score 2 runs from a pinch hit single, taking the lead in the top of the 8th. Lukas Buckner (Coastal Carolina) would come up clutch in the bottom of the frame, tying the game on a RBI single back up the middle.
With the game tied in the top of the 9th, Nicholas Mazzotta (Wagner) would come in to pitch. Mazzotta would go 1-2-3, striking out the side as the Loggers would get the chance to walk it off. With one out in the bottom of the 9th, Mana Lau Kong would demolish a ball to center field, crushing a 398 foot walk-off homerun to secure the Loggers victory.
Mana Lau Kong highlights the standout performances with his 2 extra-base hits, including his walk-off home run. Stephen Chucka reached base safely 4 times, coming around to score twice. Brayden Olsen had a solid start on the mound, and Nicholas Mazzotta impressed in his second relief appearance of the year, allowing no base runners and racking up 3 strikeouts.
The Lumbermen will play the Border Cats tomorrow night for a 7:05 game in Thunder Bay. Tristian Dietrich is set to start for La Crosse as they look to carry the momentum into the next game.