WILLMAR, MINN. — The Rochester Honkers (1-2) rode a wave of early and late offense in their first win of the season against the Willmar Stingers (2-2) in Game 1 of a day-night doubleheader on Saturday, 11-4.

Rochester wasted no time in setting the tone, as left fielder Connor Denning (Campbell) dropped a bloop single into center field four pitches into the contest. Denning advanced to third on a Robert Moore (Arkansas) single and scored shortly after on a Stingers wild pitch.

The Honkers’ middle of the order provided the thump in the second inning when center fielder Kyle Huckstorf (Iowa Western Community College) doubled Bryce Matthews (Arkansas) home from first. Seven-hole hitter Ryan Wrobleski (Dallas Baptist) followed suit with a two-run, no-doubt blast to center, opening up a 4-0 lead. Two more Honkers crossed the plate in the third when Matthews sent a longball of his own over the right-centerfield fence.

Willmar cut Rochester’s 6-0 lead in half in the seventh inning with three runs of their own on an RBI single and a two-run double. The Stingers would muster an additional run on a groundout in the eighth, but the Honkers slammed the door with nine runs in the ninth, highlighted by catcher Tanner Tweedt’s (Sacramento City College) grand slam.

Rochester starting pitcher Larson Kindreich (Biola College) twirled a sensational five-inning, one-hit performance in his first start of the season. The sophomore struck out five and did not walk a batter on his way to earning his first win of the 2020 campaign.

The Honkers will finish off the doubleheader and look for a series win against the Stingers on Saturday night at 7:35 pm CST. Tune in to Honkers Pregame Live presented by Rochester Toyota at 7:30 to get you set for the action.

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