(Rochester, Minn.) – The Rochester Honkers fell to the Willmar Stingers 10-6 on Sunday afternoon, in a game that featured five home runs.
Willmar took the first lead of the game in the second inning, when Kole Cottam (Kentucky) hit an RBI single. The Stingers made it 2-0 when Justin Toerner (Cal State Northridge) hit a solo home run in the fourth.
The Honkers tied the game in the bottom of the fourth, and it started by Turner Buis (Cal State Fullerton) extending his hit streak to 16 games with a single, and then Ryan Fitzpatrick (Saddle Back College) launched a two-run home run to tie the game.
The Stingers took the lead again in the fifth on a Danny Pardo (Montevallo) three-run home run to take a 5-4 lead. The Stingers added another run in the sixth, and then Josh Davis (Pepperdine) hit a two-run home run of his own in the bottom of the seventh, to make the score 6-4.
The Stingers came back with four runs of their own in the eighth, and two of them came off of a Toerner two-RBI single to get a 10-4 lead.
Davis hit his second home run in the bottom of the ninth to cut the Stingers’ lead to 10-6, but no more runs would cross the plate.
Max Gamboa (Pepperdine) got the start for the Honkers; he went four innings, allowed two runs on three hits, walked three and struck out two. Sam Bjorngjeld (2-2) (Tulane) got the loss for the Honkers in relief; he went 3.1 innings, allowed eight runs, seven of them earned, on eight hits, walked four and struck out four.
Tyler Hanson (4-0) (Minnesota) got the start and the win for the Stingers; he went eight innings, allowed four runs on eight hits, walked one and struck out one. Bradley Bailey (North Alabama) pitched the ninth for Willmar; he allowed two runs on three hits and walked one.
Davis went 2 for 4 with four RBI and two runs scored to lead the Honkers’ offense, while Fitzpatrick went 2 for 5 with two RBI and a run scored.
Pardo went 3 for 5 with four RBI and two runs scored to lead the Stingers, while Toerner went 3 for 3 with three RBI and a run scored to help push Willmar’s offense.
With the loss, the Honkers fall to 0-5 in the second half and 7-33 overall, while the Stingers move to 4-1 in the second half and 22-19 overall after the win.
Monday, the Honkers will take on the same Stingers team on Team Poster Night presented by Johnson Printing and Quick Country 96.5! First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. and gates open at 6. The first 500 fans will receive a free team poster! Wednesday, the Waterloo Bucks make their final trip to Rochester, and the teams will finish a suspended game from July 5th, and then will play a seven-inning game following the completion of the suspended game on Royalty Night! First pitch is set for 5:05 p.m. and gates open at 4:00! It is Royalty Night at Mayo Field, so come dressed as your favorite princess, prince or royalty and get a general admission ticket for free!
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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.
