Waterloo, IA – The Waterloo Bucks were bested by the first-place Duluth Huskies in a close final home game in 2024, as the visiting Huskies survived, 8-7.

Duluth got on top of the first inning with two runs on a Charlie Sutherland double and a Joe Vos sacrifice bunt. Duluth scored their next four runs in the top of the third inning to head into the bottom of the inning with a 6-1 lead over Waterloo.

The Bucks and Christian Smith (Illinois) answer with one of their runs in the second inning on a single to dead center field, then tack on another in the bottom of the third with a sacrifice fielder choice from Cole Smith (Southeastern CC).

Both teams exchanged blows in the fifth frame with one from Cal Elvis for the Huskies and a Lucas Moore (Lousiville) RBI Triple scoring Ricky Requejo (USAO), and the score was set at 7-4.

After the seventh inning stretch, the Bucks bats kept grinding at-bats and scored two runs in walked counts and it’s a one-run game going into the eighth inning.

Cardell Thibodeaux started the inning with a lead-off solo shot to dead center field, the deepest part of the yard, to make it a two-run lead for the Huskies.

Waterloo would head into the ninth inning, and the bases were empty with two outs. The Bucks bats kept fighting forward. With two runners on, Danny Gavin (Gustavus Adolphus) smoked a laser single into left field scoring Christian Smith making it a one-run game. After a pitching change, the Huskies only needed one pitch to end the game and sweep the Bucks.

Waterloo starts their six-game road stretch tomorrow with the first game coming at the La Crosse Loggers, with the first pitch set for 6:35 PM.