La Crosse, WI – St. Cloud (12-11) registered eleven hits in the series opener at La Crosse (11-11) but lost to the Loggers by a final score of 5-4. The game ended on a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning. John Matthews (Kent State) made a stellar start on the mound, his first of the year, as he pitched five innings and allowed two hits.

The first six innings featured the pitching and defense of the Rox as the Loggers had a 3-0 lead going into the seventh inning. Matthews struck out three batters and allowed one earned run in his five innings of work.

In the top of the seventh inning, St. Cloud scored four runs and claimed a 4-3 advantage, their first lead of the game. Ryan Davis (Georgetown) and Landon Stephens (Miami-Ohio) had the first two RBI. Then, with bases loaded, Bobby Seymour (Wake Forest) singled up the middle and brought home two runs.

The lead quickly went away in the bottom of the seventh inning, as La Crosse scored a run to tie the game at four. Erik Martinez (UC-Berkeley) came in out of the bullpen and struck out a batter with bases loaded to retire the side.

St. Cloud had runners on second and third base in the top of the ninth inning but they were left stranded. La Crosse then won the game in the next half inning.

The Rox will look to split the series with the Loggers tomorrow night. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 from Copeland Park.

The Rox are in their seventh season of Northwoods League Baseball in 2018. Single game and group tickets for the entire season are on sale now. For more information on purchasing tickets, visit the Rox Ticket Office on the west end of the Municipal Athletic Complex, call 320-240-9798 or visit www.stcloudrox.com.

The St. Cloud Rox are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Now in its 25th anniversary season, the Northwoods 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 190 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR).  All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.stcloudrox.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rox as your favorite team.