Mankato, MINN. – The Mankato MoonDogs dominated their home opener against the Willmar Stingers with a 16-0 victory at ISG Field.
The MoonDogs came out swinging early, putting up four runs in the first inning to immediately set the tone. One run came when Carson Schmidt (University of Nebraska) crossed home plate on a balk. The offense stayed hot in the second inning, adding two more runs to extend the early lead.
On the mound, Sam Stockman (University of St. Thomas) delivered an impressive performance and earned the Center Point Energy High Energy Player of the Game honors. Stockman pitched six strong innings, recording five strikeouts while facing 28 batters.
The MoonDogs continued to dominate offensively throughout the night. Camden Bates (Grand Canyon University) launched a home run in the bottom of the fourth inning to push the lead to 9-0. Later in the game, Liam Ebbs (Lafayette College) added another hit in the eighth inning, bringing in two more runs for Mankato.
Pitching remained dominant from start to finish. Wade Thewes (Wittenberg University) took over in the seventh inning and threw an immaculate inning, three batters, and just nine pitches. Nick Johnson (Minnesota State University, Mankato) and Ryan Dilger (Chandler-Gilbert CC) closed out the final innings, preserving the shutout victory over the Stingers.
The MoonDogs and Stingers will face each other tonight, May 26, at ISG Field, with first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Season tickets, group outings, flex plans, and Opening Day ticket packages are on sale now with ticket information available at www.mankatomoondogs.com or by calling the MoonDogs ticket office at (507) 625-7047. The MoonDogs office is also open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., 1221 Caledonia St., Mankato, MN.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in developing elite college baseball players. Having completed its’ 32nd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history with 26 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 410 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 two-time World Series Champion Max Scherzer (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford and World Series Champion Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove and Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (NYM).
