Willmar took an early 3-0 lead in the third inning of the game against Alexandria, but they could not score from that point forward. The Stingers ended up dropping the game, 4-3, in 10 innings to the Beetles at Knute Nelson Memorial Park Tuesday night. Three Stingers had multi-hit games. Rob Elliott (Bradley) and Blake Shepherd (Viterbo) each went 2-for-4 with a run scored, while Jason Leblebijian (Bradley) was 2-for-5 with the other run scored.

In the second inning, the Stingers scored the first run of the game after Shepherd reached on an infield single and advanced to third when Mitch Rowan (Willamette) reached on an error. Shepherd then scored from third base on a sacrifice bunt by Anthony Bemboom (Creighton).

Elliott led off the third inning with a single. He then moved into scoring position with his 17th stolen base of the season, which is tied for the Northwoods League lead. After a single by Leblebijian, Elliott scored on a single by Sean Dwyer (Florida Gulf Coast) to give Dwyer his 15th RBI of the season. Pat Stover (Santa Clara) then flied out to right field, advancing Leblebijian to third and allowing Leblebijian to score on an errant throw back to the infield by the right fielder.

However, the Stingers only collected three hits in the final seven innings. The Beetles scored a run in each the fourth, fifth and seventh innings to tie the game. The Beetles then won the game in the 10th inning with three hits, capped off by a game-winning single by Logan Bowers.

The Stingers will play at St. Cloud Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m. Willmar will then return home Thursday, June 30, at 7:05 p.m. It is Beer, Brats and Baseball Night presented by Westside Liquor. Pre-game beer tasting and specialty brats from Wick’s Meat Shoppe will be available for 200 fans purchasing special tickets to the pre-game event. Limited tickets are still available for the pre-game event, which also includes a ticket to the game.

The 2011 season is presented by Charter.