Green Bay looks to split two-game series against Kenosha Sunday afternoon
Kenosha, Wis.- The Green Bay Rockers fell to the Kenosha Kingfish 13-10 Saturday at Simmons Field, in what was the first of four scheduled meetings between the two teams this season.
Despite the Rockers cutting the Kenosha lead to as small as two midway through the contest, the Kingfish used an eight-run first inning to take a big enough lead early, handing themselves their sixth win of the season Saturday night.
Kenosha struck first in the bottom of the opening inning and scored eight runs, giving themselves an early 8-0 lead through one inning of play, as the Rockers offense looked to respond quickly in the second.
The Kingfish however extended their lead to 10-0 after a two-RBI double from Blane Schmitt (Louisville) in the bottom of the second, but Green Bay quickly responded in the third courtesy of RBI singles from Carlos Hernandez (Anderson University), and JoJo Jackson (Georgia State), cutting their deficit back to eight.
Jayson Jones (Arkansas) trimmed the deficit even more in the third with a three-run homer to left, capping off a five-run third inning for the Rockers and making the score 10-5 in favor of Kenosha after two and a half innings of play.
Despite Kenosha tacking on another run on a wild pitch, Jett Thielke (Belmont) recorded three strikeouts in the third inning for Green Bay, keeping the Rockers within striking distance entering the fourth down 11-5.
Nainoa Cardinez (Hawaii) started the fourth inning strong for the Rockers with a solo homer over the left field wall, and then after a two-RBI single from Jones, Green Bay found themselves down just two heading into the bottom of the fourth, outscoring the Kingfish 9-1 over the third and fourth innings.
Following a scoreless bottom of the fourth from Thielke, Kenosha added one run in the bottom of the fifth, pushing their lead back to three at 12-9 going into the sixth inning.
After each team went scoreless in the sixth, Mateo Matthews (Wagner) hit a home run for the second straight game, with this one trimming the Kenosha lead back to two at 12-10 entering the bottom of the seventh.
The back-and-forth battle continued after the Kingfish scored another run on an RBI groundout in the bottom of the seventh, giving them a 13-10 lead entering the eighth at Simmons Field.
Luke Moeller (Arizona) pitched a scoreless bottom of the eighth for Green Bay, keeping the score at 13-10 in favor of the Kingfish approaching the ninth inning.
Green Bay however would go scoreless in the ninth as the Kingfish sealed the deal with a 1-2-3 inning, winning the first game of a two-game series in Kenosha.
The Rockers and Kingfish will face off again Sunday afternoon at Simmons Field in the second game of the two-game series. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m.
Single game tickets are on sale now. Visit www.greenbayrockers.com or call the ticket office at 920-497-7225 to reserve your seats today. The Rockers front office and Team Apparel Fan Shop at Capital Credit Union Park are located at 2231 Holmgren Way in Ashwaubenon. Office hours are Monday-Friday 8:30am-5pm.
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The Green Bay Rockers 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. Having completed its’ 29th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 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 300 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 (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB 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 www.greenbayrockers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rockers as your favorite team.