MoonDogs Wallop Honkers, Finish First Half on Good Note
July 1, 2023 - Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Mankato MoonDogs News Release
The Mankato MoonDogs did not mess around in their final game of the first half on Saturday night, as they scored the first eight runs of the game, en route to defeating the Rochester Honkers 11-3 at Mayo Field.
The MoonDogs, who will finish third in the Great Plains West standings in the first half, have set them up nicely for a second half run which includes just eight of 35 games remaining against teams with records over .500.
Mankato got the ball rolling early. After leaving the bases loaded in the first inning, Brendan Hord (Evansville) drew a walk to force in a run in the second inning to make the score 1-0. Mankato got two runs in the third as Ari Armas (San Diego) drove in a run and then Kai Roberts (Utah) drove in another on a sacrifice fly.
Mankato was able to force the Rochester starting pitcher out of the game in the third inning, and it surely paid dividends in the fourth inning. The MoonDogs started the inning with five straight hits, including an RBI double by Ryan Nicholson (Cincinnati), an RBI single by Kip Fougerousse (Evansville), Armas ripping an RBI single, and then Ty Rumsey (Evansville) hitting a sacrifice fly. Kai Roberts capped off the five-run inning with a RBI single to make the score 8-0.
MoonDog starting pitcher Derrick Smith (North Carolina State) worked five innings, and although it was not always easy, allowed just a pair of runs in the fifth inning to make the score 8-2. Overall, Smith went five innings, allowing three hits and two runs while striking out three. Hord added to his multi-hit day in the seventh with a base hit, and then a throwing error on the play would bring around Jake Duer (TCU) to score. Nicholson then hit his second RBI double to extend the lead, and Ari Armas continued a productive day at the plate with an RBI to left field to score Nicholson.
Rochester got one run in the seventh inning, but Mankato would even that run by way of a Roberts RBI single in the top of the ninth inning. Mitch Casperson (Gustavus Adolphus) would come on for the final three outs, and would slam the door, striking out all three batters he faced.
The MoonDogs are off on Sunday and Monday, before they are back in action for a two-game set in Waterloo against the Bucks, starting on Tuesday.
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