MANKATO, MN – The St. Cloud Rox (36-25) took a 5-4 defeat to the Mankato MoonDogs (35-27) on Friday, August 2nd. The Rox remain atop the second-half Great Plains West standings with a second-half record of 18-10.

For the Rox, pitching and defense commanded the early part of Friday’s ballgame. Starting pitcher Hunter Day (Missouri State University) put forth his third consecutive quality start, dealing six innings of two-run baseball. Behind him in the field, Will Henson (Virginia Commonwealth University), Ben Higdon (University of Southern Mississippi), and RJ Stinson (William Carey University) each made a diving catch. Over his last three starts, Day has surrendered only two earned runs across 18 innings.

The Rox scored four unanswered runs between the fifth and sixth innings to swing momentum and pull in front of the MoonDogs. The first run scored in the fifth, as Henson struck a sacrifice fly to score Stinson. St. Cloud then took the lead with a three-run sixth, which Higdon opened with a single. He scored the tying run on a Noah Greise (University of Nebraska Omaha) single before Stinson pushed the Rox ahead with a two-run double.

Today’s All-Star Trophy and Awards Star of the Game is Hunter Day!

The Rox return home to start a two-game series against the Badlands Big Sticks on Saturday, August 3rd. Saturday’s 6:05 p.m. game, presented by Blaze Credit Union, will feature team trading card set night for the first 500 fans, while Sunday’s 4:05 p.m. contest will include Kids TV Takeover Day and Coborn’s Kids Day. For a complete game & promotional schedule, ticket information, and everything Rox, please visit www.stcloudrox.com!

The 2024 season is presented by Morrie’s Auto Group.

Boxscore

Standings

Rox Roster