MANKATO — While it wasn’t an overwhelming performance by any means, an efficient effort Friday night by the Mankato MoonDogs produced a 4-1 Northwoods League victory over Willmar before 1,076 fans at ISG Field.
Mankato (4-1) rode the solid mound outings of left-hander Krish Gandhi (Belmont University) and right-hander Noah Redmon (Indiana Tech) along with a trio of lead-off runners reaching against a Stinger outfit that has now been outscored 30-1 in three games against the MoonDogs.
“I would have liked a few more runs to make it less stressful, but it was a good effort,” ‘Dogs manager Danny Kneeland said. “Our pitching was phenomenal and Noah came back after cramping the other night to bounce back very well. He was able to piece it together for us and that was huge.
“We’ve got a full roster right now which is nice and everybody that is going in is doing their job so I feel comfortable with everybody I put in there. Things kind of come and go in waves so we try to prepare ahead of time as possible.”
Mankato scored a run in each of its first two at bats as shortstop Camden Bates (Grand Canyon) and center fielder Peyton Dickens (Houston) delivered lead-off singles. A throwing error and a double play ball scored Bates while a walk and a pair of wild pitches plated Dickens. DH Charlie Buckles (Florida State) paced a six-hit attack with two hits while catcher Max Senesac (Golden West) and second baseman Lucas Bruhl (North Iowa CC) also collected hits.
“It was a great team win after a tough road loss yesterday,” Buckles said. “I think a lot of guys were adjusting to a travel day but I am happy how the team bounced back and put up a great W. We’re lucky that early in the season we’ve got a bunch of great players, especially our pitching. They’ve been delivering in the zone and really attacking with all of their pitches.
“Having a great pitching staff helps out a lot and we’ve also been good both defensively and offensively. I saw the ball really well and the big thing was getting my foot down to pick up the ball as early as possible. There were some adjustments I had to make, but overall I saw the ball great and made good pitch selections.”
Willmar (1-4) scored its lone run in the top of the third when lead-off hitter Brooks Wright bounced a run-scoring single up the middle off Gandhi, who allowed four hits while striking out three and walking one over six innings.
“I just went out there and had fun,” Gandhi said. “I had a great defense behind me and my catcher gave me some great stuff to work with. My cutter was working well and it got me ahead in the count. This team has a lot of fun and it’s exciting to come to the park every day.
“We have great communication on this team and if things aren’t working out we just keep going.”
Mankato’s final two runs came in the fourth without a base hit. A trio of base on balls along with a misplayed double play expanded the margin to 4-1 and from there Redmon closed things out. Redmon gave up three hits over the final four frames, fanning six and walking none. Wright led the Singers with three hits.
“We did everything a baseball team needs to do to win,” Redmon said. “I had a rough go on Wednesday so it felt good to come out here and throw strikes consistently. I am a fastball pitcher that likes to throw heat by you. I’ll do anything I need to do to get the job done. There’s a great team culture here and the coaches are great so things really run smoothly.”
Mankato plays Saturday at Willmar.