(Rochester, Minn.) – The Honkers scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh to beat the Thunder Bay Border Cats 7-5 Monday night at Mayo Field.

Trailing 5-3 in the eighth, the Honkers got a 2-RBI single from Jacob Thomas (UC Davis), then Drew Ellis (Louisville) scored on a wild pitch, followed by a Thomas scoring on a fielder’s choice, giving the Honkers a 7-5 lead.

Ellis got the Honkers on the board with a solo home run in the bottom of the second inning. The Honkers extended their lead to 2-0 when Joey Czarske (Cal State Northridge) hit into a fielder’s choice that scored Chase Lambert (Pepperdine) in the third inning.

The Border Cats got on the board in the fifth inning, using an RBI single from Andy Weber (University of Virginia) to cut the lead in half. Shane Shepard (North Carolina State) hit a solo shot to tie the game at 2 in the sixth. Mitch Bigras (Boston College) scored later in the inning, giving the Boarder Cats a 3-2 lead.

The Honkers tied the game at 3 when Thomas scored on a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the sixth.

The Border Cats got a solo home run to lead off the seventh inning from Bobby Honeyman (Stony Brook University), and another from Anthony Brocato (St. Johns University), taking a 5-3 lead into the bottom of the seventh.

The Honkers came back with a four spot to secure the victory in the bottom of the seventh.

Alex Fagalde (UC Riverside) got the start for the Honkers; he went five innings, allowed one run on three hits, walked two and struck out eight. Sam Bjorngjeld (1-1) (Tulane) got the win for the Honkers; he pitched 1.2 innings, allowed two runs on two hits, and struck out two.  

Ricky Delgado (UC Riverside) got his first save of the season (1) to secure the win for the Honkers.

Shannon Broussard (Cedar Valley) got the start for Thunder Bay; he pitched 2.1 innings, allowed two runs on two hits, walked four and struck out four. Tom Mullin (0-2) (Pennsylvania State University) got the loss for the Border Cats; he pitched four innings, allowed four runs on two hits, walked two and struck out four.

Thomas went 1 for 3 with two RBI and two runs scored to pace the Honkers’ offense, while Turner Buis (Cal State Fullerton) went 2 for 3 with a run scored to help out.

Brocato went 2 for 4 with one RBI and a run scored to pace the Border Cats’ offense.

The Honkers will take on the same Thunder Bay team tomorrow night for Seat Cushion Night presented by Johnson Printing and Newstalk 1340 KROC! The first 500 fans will receive a free seat cushion! First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. and gates open at 6:00! Tuesday is also TV Tuesday presented by Sam's Club! A fan will have a chance to win a free 40" TV! Wednesday the Honkers have a double header against the Mankato MoonDogs. Game 1 will be played in Mankato, with first pitch set for 12:05 p.m. Then, both teams will come back to Rochester to play a game at 7:05 p.m. Wednesday is Field of future Starts Night presented by Meshbesher & Spence, where all RYBA, RYSA, RYHA, Girls Softball & Miracle League players wearing their uniform top gain free general admission! Gates open at 6:00 p.m!

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The Rochester Honkers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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, more than 150 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.rochesterhonkers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store and set the Honkers as your favorite team