(Rochester, Minn.) – The Rochester Honkers (5-6) pulled off a 7-6 win over the La Crosse Loggers (2-9) at Mayo Field Friday night. The game featured two ties with both teams within three runs of each other the entire night. Three Honkers had multi-hit games, highlighted by a three-for-three night by Zach Zubia (Texas). The La Crosse offense punched out five extra-base hits, including two triples.
Honkers’ starting pitcher Hunter Sullivan (Louisville) hit La Crosse third baseman Ryan Mantle (Jefferson CC) in the first at-bat of the game. After a passed ball moved him to third, he scored on a groundout to give La Crosse an early 1-0 lead.
Rochester answered with two runs in the bottom of the first. Zach Zubia doubled with one out, scoring Johnathan Fleek (Western Illinois) to tie the game. Zubia scored in the next at-bat on a Logger error.
After La Crosse tied the game in the top of the second, Rochester took the lead back in their half of the inning. Two singles and a hit batter loaded the bases with one out. Two Honkers crossed the plate after another Logger error. Two batters later, Zubia followed with a RBI single to put the Honkers up 5-2.
Sullivan held the Loggers scoreless in his final two innings of his start. He pitched 4.0 innings, giving up two runs (one earned) with two strikeouts and five walks. Down a run, Sage Bruhl (MATC) tied the game at 5-5 in the sixth with a sacrifice fly, scoring Connor Perry (Pittsburgh).
The Honkers loaded the bases to lead off the bottom of the sixth. Weston Hatten (Nevada) capitalized on the opportunity by hitting a sacrifice fly to deep right field, scoring Michael Echavia (Nevada) to take a 6-5 lead.
The Loggers picked up a run in the eighth and threatened to tie in the ninth inning, down 7-6. Manny Armendariz (Doane) closed out the game in his 1.2 innings of relief, striking out Mike Ferri (UW-Milwaukee) for the final out. He picked up his second save of the season with two strikeouts. Weston Hatten also had a sliding catch from center field to help seal the win.
Drew Slade (Ripon) picked up the win (1-0) for Rochester. He pitched two innings with a walk and a strikeout. Charlie Fletcher (William Mary) took the loss (0-1) for La Crosse.
The Honkers will cross the Mississippi River to battle the Loggers from Copeland Park tomorrow night. Ryan Thompson (Illinois) is scheduled to start on the mound for the Honkers. First pitch from La Crosse, Wis. is 6:05 pm.
The next home game for the Honkers is Sunday, June 11th against the Bismarck Larks. This will be the first matchup against the inaugural Larks team. Sunday will be Royalty Day at Mayo Field. All kids 15 and under that come dressed as royalty receive a free general admission ticket. Gates open at noon for a 1:05 pm first pitch.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 23-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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 160 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
