St. Cloud, MINN. – The Mankato MoonDogs rallied from an early deficit to defeat the St. Cloud Rox 9-6 on Wednesday night at Joe Faber Field.

St. Cloud jumped out to a 3-1 lead after the first inning and added two more runs in the third to take a 5-1 advantage.

The MoonDogs answered in the fifth, putting together a five-run inning to take their first lead of the night. Sam Erickson (Lamar University) delivered the biggest hit of the inning with a three-run single, while Kyle Hvidsten (Liberty University) added a two-run single to give Mankato a 6-5 lead.

Mankato continued to add on, scoring a run in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings to build a 9-5 advantage. The Rox added one run in the eighth, but the MoonDogs shut the door in the ninth to secure the win.

The MoonDogs collected 12 hits in the win, led by Mikey Valdivia (Minnesota State University), who went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Josey Williamson (University of Alabama) and Liam Ebbs (Wofford College) each added two hits, while Williamson scored three runs and Ebbs drove in two.

Travis Godfrey (University of Minnesota Morris) earned the win after tossing 4.2 innings of relief, allowing one run on five hits while striking out three. Kaeden Guida (Minnesota State University) closed out the game with 1.1 scoreless innings and two strikeouts to earn the save.

The MoonDogs return to action Thursday at the St. Cloud Rox. the first pitch is at 6:35 pm. 

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