WILLMAR, MN.- Looking to keep their success going after a series sweep in St. Cloud, the Willmar Stingers were able to do so with highlights on both sides of the diamond in a 12-2 win against the Thunder Bay Border Cats on Saturday.

Andrew Sojka started the scoring with a bang for the Stingers as he launched a two-run homer in the third inning to put the black and yellow in front.

The Stingers got one more across the following inning with a single from Nick Poss.

Willmar would double its lead in the fifth as it started to get to the Border Cats bullpen.

The Stingers forced four consecutive walks and took advantage of two wild pitches to build a 6-0 lead.

During all that scoring, MinnWest Technology Campus Player of the Game Luke Schafer didn’t allow a hit through his first five innings on the mound.

It took until the sixth for the Border Cats to finally get to Schafer as two runs came off a single from Cole Ketzner.

That was all that the Border Cats offense would muster up the rest of the way thanks to Hemponix Relief Pitcher of the Game Adam Biewen.

While Biewen was dominant through his three shutout innings, the Stingers weren’t done adding more insurance runs.

Parker Stinson doubled in the seventh to bring a runner home and the Stingers exploded for a five-run inning in the eighth.

The big blow to close the scoring would be a two-run homer from Kyle Payne to put an exclamation point on a 12-2 victory.

Willmar will now look for both a series sweep and a fifth consecutive win as they face the Border Cats on Sunday.

For more coverage of the Stingers, visit the West Central Tribune online at www.wctrib.com.

The 2023 season is presented by J.D. Kreps Financial Group, empowering investors with powerful financial advice.

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The Willmar Stingers 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. Now in its 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world 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, over 325 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 (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB 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.willmarstingers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Stingers as your favorite team.