The Thunder Bay Border Cats came up just short of winning their second straight home contest, falling 6-5 to the Rochester Honkers at Port Arthur Stadium on Thursday.

A four-run fifth inning from the visiting Honkers erased an early Thunder Bay lead, giving Rochester the margin needed to hold on for a victory to even the first two games of the four-game series between the two clubs.

Border Cats shortstop Manny Alberto (Three Rivers Community College) launched a two-run shot over the right field fence in the fourth inning for Thunder Bay’s first home run of the campaign.

Thunder Bay’s Trae Cassidy (Ohio University) continued his hot start at the dish, going 2-for-3 with a double, one run batted in and a stolen base. During the first two games of the series against Rochester, Cassidy is 7-for-8 with 6 runs scored, 3 RBI, and 5 stolen bases.

Rochester’s Drew Charney had a go-ahead two-run base hit to left field in the fifth. Honkers catcher Angel Cortez finished the game with a pair of hits, driving in two runs.

The two Great Plains East Division rivals now sport identical 2-2 records.

Right hander Jackson Irwin is scheduled to get the start for the Border Cats on Friday.

The Border Cats and Honkers continue their four-game series Friday night with first pitch scheduled for 7:35 p.m. ET.  It’s “Flyaway Friday,” where one lucky fan will win two tickets for anywhere Porter Airlines flies. There’s also fireworks following the game.

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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’ 32nd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history with 24 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, nearly 2400 NWL alums have been drafted and over 380 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 (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford 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, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove, two-time Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). League games are viewable live on Northwoods League+ (at watch.northwoodsleague.com), ESPN+, and the Northwoods League Network. Learn more and find complete streaming schedules at watchnwl.com. 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 Border Cats as your favourite team.