Written by: Connor Wachtel
MANKATO, Minn. – In a Northwoods League pitcher’s duel Tuesday night at ISG Field, the Mankato MoonDogs prevailed 2-0 over the Duluth Huskies.
Dealing in his return to the MoonDogs’ starting rotation was southpaw Owen Boerema (Northwestern – St. Paul). Boerema threw eight innings and flirted with a no-hitter before allowing one hit in the eighth inning. Overall, he allowed one hit while shutting out the Huskies in eight complete innings of work. He walked one batter and struck out 11 others along the way.
With the victory, the MoonDogs, now 2-0, ride a two-game winning streak to open the 2022 season. Falling victim of the sweep, the Huskies now stand 0-2 to start the summer.
In a battle of pitchers between the MoonDogs and Huskies Tuesday night at ISG Field, the first three innings were a scoreless and hitless affair.
It took until the seventh inning for the MoonDogs to pick up the game’s first run when Nick Altermatt (Minnesota State – Mankato) launched Mankato’s second home run of the summer over the fence in right field. Later in the inning, Derek Shoen (UMary) scored from second on a single blooped to left-center by Zach Stroh (Butler Central College). The MoonDogs carried their 2-0 lead from the seventh inning onward in Tuesday’s contest.
New to Mankato’s roster, Tyson Neighbors (Kansas State) pitched the ninth inning and picked up his first save of the summer. After walking one, Neighbors struck out a pair and rolled up a groundout to help the MoonDogs secure their second consecutive victory.
On the mound for Duluth, Jake Hamilton (Oklahoma Baptist) pitched five shutout innings with two hits against en route to an eventual non-decisive outing. Coming down with the loss was Trent Martin (Johnson County CC) after he surrendered the two runs in the seventh to the MoonDogs.
Mankato outhit Duluth by a 5-1 margin in the series finale. Both sides were perfect on the defensive with no errors in the field.
The MoonDogs open a new two-game series against the Waterloo Bucks on Wednesday Night at ISG Field. First pitch is slated for 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’ 28th 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 280 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 (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist 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 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com. 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.
