Rolison Twirls a Gem, Surowiec and Downing Go Yard in 6-2 Huskies Win over La Crosse in Postseason Series Game One
Northwoods Duluth Huskies

Rolison Twirls a Gem, Surowiec and Downing Go Yard in 6-2 Huskies Win over La Crosse in Postseason Series Game One

Published on August 11, 2025 under Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Duluth Huskies News Release


LA CROSSE, WI - The Huskies earned a Game One victory in the Subdivisional Series opener against La Crosse, winning at Copeland Park by a 6-2 score.

Duluth, having clinched the second-half division title in the Great Plains East, travelled to La Crosse for the first game of the series. Copeland Park hosted a crowd of 711 paid attendees for the evening, according to the Loggers' Public Address announcement.

The Huskies wasted no time in getting to Loggers' starter Luispablo Navarro, with centerfielder Rowan Kelly leading off the game with a double into the right-center gap. Left fielder Noah Furcht then hit a soft chopper towards third which was bobbled by Loggers' third baseman Kendren Kenzie. Furcht reached on an error, putting the first two Huskies aboard with no outs for recently-crowned Northwoods League MVP Ethan Surowiec.

In a 1-0 count, Surowiec got a pitch to hit and did not miss it. He lofted a fly ball to deep left field, clearing the wall and giving him a three-run homer to kick off his postseason run. The Huskies led in an instant, 3-0.

In the bottom of the inning, the Huskies sent out Evan Rolison to toe the rubber. The Flower Mound, Texas native pitched to a 3.04 ERA in the regular season with a 2-2 record across 23 and â..." innings pitched. In his first frame of work back at Copeland Park, he twirled a strong first inning, working around a tough ball three call in his at-bat against Carson Ohland to strike out Joe Quelch swinging.

In the second inning, Huskies' second baseman Jake Downing destroyed a baseball, sending it not only past the right field wall but over the trees that stand between the wall of the stadium and Route 53. That big fly made it 4-0, Duluth.

The pups would add on again in the third, when Ethan Surowiec shot a one-out double into center, and Ethan Cole hit a follow-up two-out double to drive the MVP home. In the fourth, Duluth made it six runs thanks to Rowan Kelly's RBI groundout that scored Huskies catcher Kingsley Guthrie.

Evan Rolison continued to pitch strongly until running into trouble in the bottom of the fourth. In that half of the inning, Carson Ohland reached on a rare error by Jake Downing, and was followed by two singles from Joe Quelch and Eli Small. With the bases loaded and no one out, Savion Flowers dribbled a ball to first. Reagan Reeder, manning first base for the Huskies, fired the ball down to second to attempt a double play while the first La Crosse run scored. On the return throw, it was ruled that Reeder had not held the bag, resulting in just one out on a fielder's choice.

With the score 6-1, Rolison gave up a third single by Kelsen Johnson to center, scoring Quelch, before retiring Griffin Olson and Kanon Sundgren to end the frame.

Rolison recovered in his fifth, sixth, and seventh innings - all scoreless frames in which he allowed just one baserunner. In the eighth, he gave up a one-out single and a two-out double, putting runners at second and third with two outs. After seven and two-thirds innings of two-run ball, Rolison was lifted in favor of reliever Joe Gizzi, who got the third out of the inning when Savion Flowers grounded out to McIntyre at short.

Gizzi remained in the game into the bottom of the ninth, when the Loggers rallied thanks to a tight strike zone that allowed La Crosse to load the bases. With Carson Ohland up to bat, one of the Loggers' most productive bats throughout the 2025 season, Gizzi got him into a 1-2 count. With the game on the line, he blew a high fastball past Ohland's swing, ending the ballgame and giving the Huskies a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series. Rolison earned the win on the mound, having pitched 7 and two thirds innings with six strikeouts.

On Deck:

The Huskies host La Crosse at the Wade this evening, with first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Central Time. If necessary, a third and deciding game will take place tomorrow at the same time at Wade Stadium.

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Northwoods League Stories from August 11, 2025


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