The 2025 Northwoods League All-Star Game held in Madison, WI Wednesday night featured top players from the Great Lakes and Great Plains divisions.

Wednesday night’s game was a pitcher’s dream. Both teams saw many different pitchers from across the division and even more strike outs. The game ended with a combined total of 25 strikeouts through 21 different pitchers.

The first run of the game was not scored until the bottom of the second inning, when Max Soliz of the Wausau Woodchucks hit a home run on his fourth pitch for the Great Lakes Division. The Great Plains were only able to even the score in the top of the fourth inning when Ethan Surowiec of the Duluth Huskies hit his own one-run home run over the center field fence, tying the game 1-1 before the end of the half.

The fifth inning saw a major lineup change for both teams, but both teams went three up and three down without scoring a single run. The sixth inning saw both teams run up the score a bit. The Great Plains Division took the lead for the first time Wednesday night off of the St Cloud Rox player Austin Haley’s steal home during Maddox Haley’s at bat. Tate Shimao of the Rockford Rivets scored for the Great Lakes Division off of a sacrifice RBI by the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters’ Noah Ruiz. The score was 2-2 after the end of the sixth.

Neither team scored through the seventh or eighth innings, but the Duluth Huskies’ Michael Smith hammered a go-ahead home run over the left field fence, putting the Great Plains Division one over the Great Lakes heading into the bottom of the ninth.

The Great Lakes had two runners on second and third with two outs on the board while Brandon Jaenke of the St. Cloud Rox was on the mound. Joshua Algarin of the Battle Creek Battle Jacks was at the plate with an 0-2 count when Jaenke fired the ball across the plate. Algarin barely missed the ball swinging and the Great Plains earned their thirteenth strikeout of the game to win. The score was 3-2 for the Great Plains Division, a come back after losing last year’s All-Star Game.

Two Minot Hot Tots players were featured members of this year’s Great Plains Division All-Star Team: Matt Toomey and Henry Allen. Both players played in the first half of the game. Toomey had just three at bats for the night and Allen only had two. Allen secured the very first hit of the game during the second inning with a single into right field.

The Hot Tots will get to take Tuesday, July 17 to rest and relax before starting back up in Willmar, MN against the Willmar Stingers on Friday, July 18.