Article by Nevada Cullen, Photo by Melissa Vozar
KENOSHA, WI — The Battle Creek Battle Jacks struggled at the plate and on the mound in Friday’s 12-2 loss to the Kenosha Kingfish. They managed just two runs on four hits, while the Kingfish recorded 14 knocks of their own.
Kenosha struck first in the second with an Anthony Mangano two-run single through the right side. He turned in a three-hit performance for the Kingfish.
The Kingfish plated three more in the third. Ian Collier crushed a three-run blast to left to extend Kenosha’s lead to 5-0.
Finally, the Battle Jacks erased their goose egg in the fourth. Jace Matkin singled and scored on a Billy Hancock fielder’s choice.
However, Kenosha matched that in the bottom of the inning. Drake Wescott hit a sacrifice fly to make it a 6-1 cushion.
After back-to-back singles by Dillon Kark and Bobby Nichols in the fifth, Pat Mills plated a run with yet another fielder’s choice. The Kingfish responded again with an RBI double by James McCoy in the bottom of the inning to push Kenosha’s lead back out to five. McCoy delivered with his second four-hit performance in three days.
Later, the seventh inning was the nail in the coffin for Battle Creek. The Kingfish sent 10 batters to the plate and scored five runs, with a two-run double by Collier and RBI single from Nick Iannatone.
The Battle Jacks (7-4) and Kingfish (7-4) will battle for sole possession of first place Saturday in Kenosha. First pitch is slated for 7:05 p.m. ET.
