Mankato, Minn.- The Mankato MoonDogs lost their second game in as many days, falling to the Rochester Honkers by a score of 9-4 on Thursday night at Franklin Rogers Park.

The game was a close pitchers duel for the first six innings of the game. Tyler Niederklein (Nebraska) had the no decision for the MoonDogs, pitching six innings, spreading out ten hits and giving up two runs. Jeff McKenzie (Delta College) was on the hill for the Honkers and pitched 5 2/3 innings, giving up three runs on three hits and striking out five MoonDogs batters.

The Rochester offense broke out for five runs in the top of the seventh inning and three runs in the top of the ninth to put the game out of reach for the MoonDogs. Johnny Coy (Wichita State) led the Honker offense, going 4-for-5 with three RBIs, a home run and a double. Coy ended up being a triple shy of hitting for the cycle. In all, the Honker offense had 19 hits on the night.

The MoonDog offense was stagnant for the second night in a row, only managing six hits, two of those hits coming from James Roberts (USC). Joe Loftus (Vanderbilt) was 1-for-4 on the night for the ‘Dogs and drove in two runs.

The MoonDogs are home again tomorrow night and will battle Rochester again. Tomorrow night, July 8th, SpongeBob Square Pants will be at The Frank presented by Charter Communications. The Nickelodeon character will make an appearance at The Frank to pose for photographs.