By John Baldridge/Fond du Lac Dock Spiders
FOND DU LAC, WI – The Fond du Lac Dock Spiders fell on Tuesday night at Herr-Baker Field to Green Bay, 19-7. The loss moved the Dock Spiders to 18-30 on the season.
The Rockers started the scoring with two runs in the first inning, taking a 2-0 lead. A double from Mulivai Levu (UCLA) gave Green Bay a 1-0 lead, and two batters later, a single from Nick Harms (Case Western Reserve) scored Levu, making it 2-0.
Green Bay added two more runs in the second inning with a triple from Makani Tanaka (Saddleback) that scored a run, followed by a wild pitch later in the inning that brought in Tanaka, making the score 4-0.
The Dock Spiders got on the board in the bottom of the second inning with a single from Drew Howard (Evansville) that scored a run, making it 4-1.
In the third inning, Green Bay extended their lead after a leadoff double from Mulivai Levu. A single two batters later by Nick Harms brought home Levu, growing the Green Bay lead to 5-1. In the bottom of the inning, the Dock Spiders got a run closer with a single into center field from Tyler Neises (Georgia Tech) that scored Preston Knott (Northwestern), making the score 5-2.
In the fifth inning, Green Bay extended their lead further with a leadoff home run to center field from Jake Bold (Princeton), making it 6-2. In the inning, Green Bay brought eight batters to the plate and scored four runs, growing their lead to 9-2 with RBI singles from Mateo Mathews (Wagner), Daalen Adderley (Loyola Marymount), and a sac fly from Makani Tanaka (Saddleback). In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Dock Spiders responded with three runs. After loading the bases with one out, a single from Tyler Stack (Xavier) brought in two runs, making it 9-4. The next hitter, Drew Prosek (Gulf Coast State), grounded out to second base, scoring another run and making the score 9-5.
In the sixth inning, Green Bay broke the game wide open, bringing ten to bat and scoring six runs in an inning that consisted of three hits, three walks, and a hit-by-pitch, giving the Rockers a 15-5 lead.
Over the final three innings, the Rockers added four more runs, three in the seventh inning and one in the eighth inning, giving Green Bay a 19-5 lead. In the ninth inning, the Dock Spiders scored two runs, one of which was an RBI single from Drew Barragan, his 43rd of the season and the team lead. The Dock Spiders fell short, though, by a final score of 19-7.
The Dock Spiders hit the road on Wednesday against Green Bay at Capital Credit Union Park, with the first pitch at 6:35 p.m.
The Fond du Lac Dock Spiders are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Entering its’ 31st season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 26 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, over 350 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (TEX), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (STL) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, 2021 and 2023 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner, and two-time All-MLB first-team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit dockspiders.com or 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