Photo captured by Dylan Engel (Mankato MoonDogs)
Written by Jacob Toepfer
BISMARCK, N.D. – The Mankato MoonDogs got back in the win column Saturday night beating the Bismarck Larks, 8-4, in a game of Northwoods League baseball at Bismarck Municipal Stadium.
The MoonDogs improved to 35-26 on the season and 16-11 in the second-half standings. Bismarck now sits at 10-19 in the second half with an overall record of 21-42 this summer following the loss.
Once again, Charles McAdoo (San Jose State) was clutch at the plate batting two-for-three and hitting his fourth home run in three games. Zach Stroh (Minnesota State – Mankato) also sported a solid day, with one hit for a pair of RBI. Kai Roberts (Utah) also had two RBI while batting two-for-five in the contest.
It was a stalemate for the first three innings before the MoonDogs plated four runs in the top of the fourth. Mankato started it off by getting two runners aboard for Stroh, who took full advantage by slapping an RBI triple to make it 2-0. Dustin Crenshaw (Grand Canyon) proceeded to drive in Stroh with an RBI single and later scored on a knock by Roberts, which made it a 4-0 ballgame.
Both sides traded runs the rest of the way. The Larks answered with one in the bottom half of the fourth before McAdoo responded in the fifth with the eventual game-winning home run. His ninth blast of the year made it 5-1 before Mankato added one more in the sixth and the Larks responded with two in the seventh. After the MoonDogs scored twice more in the final two frames, the Larks mounted a rally late but only mustered one run and the game ended in an 8-4 final.
Noah Meffert (Gustavus) had an excellent performance on the mound, going six and two-thirds of an inning while only giving up one earned run. Alfredo Frey (Covina) and Jakob Meyer (Evansville) held the Larks in check as relievers.
Mankato and Bismarck meet one last time at 5:35 p.m. Sunday at Bismarck Municipal Ballpark. The MoonDogs will be hunting for their first series sweep of the summer against the Larks in Sunday’s finale.
-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. Now in its’ 29th 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, 300 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 2019/2021 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 and on ESPN+. 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.
