By: Connor Wachtel
DULUTH, Minn. – The Mankato MoonDogs (36-17) dropped the second and final game of a series against the Duluth Huskies (21-31) by an 11-2 margin, Tuesday at Wade Stadium.
The Huskies scored four and seven runs consecutively en route to the 11-2 victory over the MoonDogs in Duluth. After the loss which dropped the MoonDogs to a 12-8 record in the second-half standings, Mankato now trails St. Cloud by three games in the Great Plains West division.
Preston Clifford (Washington State) was Mankato’s biggest threat with the bat, Tuesday. The Tucson, Ariz., native dawned a 2-for-4 line. In terms of run production, Will Hanafan (Creighton) drove in the MoonDogs’ first run in the fourth frame on a groundout before Justin Boyd (Oregon State) followed suit in the ninth to score one more.
The hits department saw Mankato get outhit by Duluth, 12-4. The MoonDogs also had the game’s only error and led runners left on base, 10-7.
The loss went to MoonDogs’ southpaw John Lundgren (North Alabama), dropping his record to 2-3 in 2021 after he made his third start of the summer. Lundgren threw two and two-thirds innings allowing six hits and four runs. He walked and struck out one along the way.
The Mankato MoonDogs return home, after grabbing two of their four games on the road at St. Cloud and Duluth, to play host to the Waterloo Bucks (32-21), Thursday and Friday at 6:35 p.m.
-DOGS-
The Mankato MoonDogs are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Having completed its’ 27th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, over 230 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB All-Star Jordan Zimmermann (DET). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.mankatomoondogs.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the MoonDogs as your favorite team.
