Rochester, MN — The Honkers tried to make it three wins in a row when they traveled to La Crosse, but the Loggers had other plans as they scored four early runs and eventually won 4-2.

La Crosse got the scoring started in the bottom of the first inning when JT Schwartz hit an RBI groundout which scored Ryan Holgate from third base.

Honkers’ starter Mike Lopez  (Cal State-San Marcos) bounced back in the second inning by retiring the side to keep the score at 1-0.

Unfortunately, the Loggers added to their lead in the bottom of the third when Schwartz hit an RBI single. The next batter, Trey Harris, laced a double into the outfield to give La Crosse a 3-0 lead.  That three-run lead didn’t last long as Hunter Watson made it 4-0 when he hit an RBI groundout.

After four scoreless innings by Loggers’ starter Steve Bowley, Rochester got on the board in the fifth inning when Aaron Simmons (Wisconsin-Stevens Point) crushed a solo home run over the right field wall.

The Honkers got another run when Nate Webb (California-Riverside) hit a sacrifice-fly to right field which allowed Kyler McMahan (Oregon State) to tag up from third base and make the score 4-2.

In the seventh inning, Matthew Richey relieved Bowley and he struck out four Honkers in two scoreless innings.

Jared Freilich came in to pitch the ninth inning for La Crosse and he gave up a hit to Simmons, but he got the next batter, Andy Armstrong (Oregon State), to fly-out to center field for the final out of the game.

The 4-2 loss dropped Rochester’s second half record to 10-8 and their overall record to 28-25.

Aaron Simmons was named the Profile Sanford Player of the Game for going 2-3 with a home run, a single, and a walk.

The Honkers will host the Loggers at Mayo Field on Tuesday, July 23, at 6:35 p.m. After that, the Flock get a rare day off on Wednesday, July 24.