Sam Stem #7 is greeted at home plate by Zane Skansi #19 , after the left fielder hit a two-run home run in Sunday’s 9-4 win over the La Crosse Loggers.
The Thunder Bay Border Cats ended up with a split of their two games with the La Crosse Loggers on Sunday at Port Arthur Stadium. In the completion of Saturday’s suspended game, the Cats won 9-4, but dropped the second game 14-2. Thunder Bay’s second half record now stands at 8-5.
In the 9-4 victory, Brayden Kuriger (Nicholls State University) hit a two-run home run, his first of the season, and added an RBI double as the Cats battled back from early from 3-0 and 4-2 deficits. Leading 7-4 when the game resumed in the last of the fourth inning on Sunday, Sam Stem (Gonzaga University) put the game out of reach with a two-run home run, his second of the season. Zane Skansi (Creighton University) added three hits with a double and two runs scored. Sean Heppner (University of British Columbia) came on in relief and fired three scoreless innings with six strikeouts for his first win of the year.
In the second game, the Cats trailed 3-2 before the Loggers erupted for two runs in the fifth inning, another pair in the sixth, and seven runs in the seventh. Stem had a run scoring double, while starter Turner Spoljaric (University of Oregon) took the loss to fall to 1-1. The Canadian righthander gave up five runs on nine hits over 4 2/3 innings.
The Cats and Loggers wrap up their four-game series on Monday night at 6:35pm. NWL All-Star Max Ramirez IV (Niagara University) takes his 5-0 record to the mound for Thunder Bay. The first 250 fans thru the gates receive free hand clappers courtesy of Brickhost. Fans can also use their Bogo cards and receive two tickets for 22.00 + tax. The stadium ticket office opens on game days at 10:00am.
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The Thunder Bay Border Cats 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. Entering its’ 31st season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 26 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 350 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 (TEX), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (STL) 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, 2021 and 2023 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information visit www.bordercatsbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rockers as your favorite team.