ROCHESTER, Minn. – Rochester had the bases loaded in the ninth, trailing by two, but could not cap off the rally.

If the Honkers’ pitching was the story yesterday, it was Thunder Bay’s that took center stage today, allowing only two runs.

 Brady Lejeune-Deacutis had another strong start for Rochester, allowing just three runs in four innings.

The bullpen, led by Chris Galinda and four strong innings from Caden Klebba, allowed just one run for the visiting Border Cats to come across.

Max Aude finished with two singles in the evening, including a massive hit in the eighth inning.

With the Honkers trailing by three, he would later be scored by a Jake Jackson RBI double, bringing the Honkers within two runs.

After another scoreless inning from Klebba, the Honkers came to the plate needing two runs in the bottom of the ninth. With two runners on base and two outs, Aude came up huge again with a single.

That set the table with the bases loaded and the Honkers still trailing by only two, but Carter Wall would shut the door to earn his third save of the year with a strikeout on a beautiful 3-2 slider.

After splitting the first two games, the two teams will face off at 5:05 on Sunday at Mayo Field. Braden Gluth(0-0) will get the start for the visiting Border Cats, while Beau Alazaus (1-2) looks for his second win of the campaign.

The Rochester Honkers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 32nd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history with 24 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, nearly 2400 NWL alums have been drafted and over 400 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford and World Series Champion Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove, two-time Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). League games are viewable live on Northwoods League+ (at watch.northwoodsleague.com) and ESPN+. For more information, visit the Rochester Honkers website or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Honkers as your favorite team.