FOND DU LAC, WI- After being on the road for six straight games the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders (7-7) got back at home and in the win column as they took down the Lakeshore Chinooks (7-7) 6-3.
For the second straight day it was another big 3rd inning for Fondy. Alex Henwood (Nebraska) and Alex Erro (Northwestern) both picked up RBI singles in the inning to put the Dock Spiders ahead 2-0. For Erro it was his debut as a Spider and he finished the night 2/4. When asked about playing in front of the crowd Erro said, “It definitely felt like home. It was a good crowd and a good atmosphere for a weekday game.”
Hailing from Santa Clarita, CA Thomas Luevano (Creighton) hit his first home run of the year on a 3 run shot that made it over the left field fence in the same inning to put Fond du Lac ahead 5-0. Luevano added, “I was just trying to get a fastball on the inner half and he threw it right where I was looking for.”
Lakeshore would tack on 3 runs of their own in the 5th inning one coming off a wild pitch and the other coming from a 2 RBI single off the bat of Connor Kimple (South Mountain).
Shane Ritter (Iowa) started the game for the Dock Spiders and finished with 4 2/3 IP, 3 runs, 3 BB, and 2 K on 21 batters faced.
With Fond du Lac up 5-3 in the bottom of the 8th, Chris Ayers (Indiana State) lined one into right field for an RBI single sending Alex Henwood home, who had reached on base earlier in the inning on a bunt.
Nate Thomas (Northern Illinois) was nearly perfect in relief for Fondy coming in during the the 8th inning. For the South Bend, IN product he retired the side both times and registered 2 strikeouts, both on swings in the 9th.
For the second two game series, the first vs. Wisconsin Rapids and now Lakeshore, the Dock Spiders have lost the first game and come to bounce back with wins the following night. When Field Manager, Zac Charbonneau, was asked about the stat he noted, “I proud of how we bounced back and to say that we didn’t get swept I something to be happy about. At the same time there are a lot of good teams in this league and if you don’t come ready to play each night you will take it on the chin.”
Fond du Lac will be back at home tomorrow to open up a two game series vs. the Battle Creek Bombers. First pitch is at 6:35 PM.
The Fond du Lac Dock Spiders are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Now in its 25th anniversary season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 190 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.dockspiders.comor download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Dock Spiders as your favorite team.
