Honkers Can't Hold Lead, Lose 6-4
July 15, 2012 - Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Rochester Honkers News Release
(Rochester, MN) - The Rochester Honkers blow a four-run lead in the eighth and lose to the Alexandria Beetles on Sunday in Rochester by a final score of 6-4.
The Honkers had beaten the Beetles in their first five showdowns of the season, but now fall to 5-1 for the season series.
The game was scoreless until the fifth inning when the Honkers pushed four runs across the plate highlighted by a bases-loaded double from center fielder Dakota Smith (Kansas) to drive in two. Smith finished the game 1 for 4 with those two RBIs.
Honkers starter Kevin Johnson (Illinois) tossed his most effective 6.0 innings of the summer, but the seventh was a completely different story. Johnson surrendered a total of five earned runs and only recorded one out in the frame as the Beetles put a six-spot on the scoreboard to take a 6-4 lead.
After back-to-back hits with one out in the bottom of the eighth from third baseman Jordan Parr (Illinois) and catcher Chad Wallach (Cal State Fullerton), the next two Honkers went down in order to end the threat.
With the loss, Kevin Johnson is now 0-3 in 2012.
Jordan Parr went 2 for 4 with a run scored for the Honkers and first baseman Cole Lankford (Texas A&M) went 1 for 4 with an RBI.
The Honkers (4-7, 19-27) and Beetles (6-5, 19-27) will complete the two-game set tomorrow, July 16th with the first pitch set for 1:05 PM from Rochester, MN. Lefty Jared Miller (Vanderbilt), who is 2-1 in four starts with a 2.37 ERA, will oppose Alexandria right-hander Jon Reed (Walters State). Reed is 3-1 with an ERA of 3.61 in ten total appearances.
Miller pitched 6.0 innings of one-run baseball against the Beetles on June 25th to pick up his first victory of the season. Miller allowed just one hit and struck out nine batters as the Honkers won 11-1.
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