St. Cloud, MN – St. Cloud (27-13) dropped its final game of the season to Willmar 9-3 on Thursday, but finished as winners of 18 of its last 22 games.

After falling behind 1-0 in the top of the first inning, St. Cloud quickly responded. Andrew Pintar (BYU) smashed an inside-the-park home run to center field to tie the game. Willmar’s outfielder Hunter Ranweiler dove for the ball, but it rolled under him and landed on the warning track, allowing Pintar to score.

Trailing 8-1 in the seventh inning, the Rox were able to score two runs. Jack Winkler (San Francisco) and Collin Montez (Washington State) led off with consecutive singles. Kodie Kolden (Washington State) then ripped a single to right field and scored a run. Ben Norman (Iowa) later flew out to center field, but Montez was able to tag up and score. 

Pintar and Winkler both finished the game with two hits. Kolden went 3-4 at the plate.

Luke Albright (Kent State) started the game and pitched 3.1 innings, striking out five batters. Trevor Koenig (St. Cloud State) followed him out of the bullpen, giving up one hit. 2020 Rox Team MVP Blake Stelzer (Concordia-St. Paul) tossed two innings and struck out two batters. Josh Gainer (LIU-Brooklyn) finished the game, hurling the final two innings.

The Rox finish the 2020 season with a second place finish in the Minnesota/Iowa pod. They went 17-3 at Joe Faber Field.

The St. Cloud Rox 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. Having completed its 26th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, over 230 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 (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB All-Star Jordan Zimmermann (DET). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. 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.