KENOSHA, Wis. — On a night when the Kingfish became the Kenosha Keepers, they protected home field and finished off something they had not done in four years.

Kenosha beat the Kalamazoo Growlers 8-6 on Saturday night at Historic Simmons Field, completing a two-game sweep and clinching its first season series win over Kalamazoo since 2022. The Kingfish took five of eight games from the Growlers this summer and won the final three meetings between the two clubs.

The win moved Kenosha to 33-21 overall and 12 games above .500. The Kingfish have won six straight at home and 11 of their last 12 games at Simmons Field.

Kalamazoo grabbed the first punch in the opening inning. Josh Campbell singled, moved up on a groundout and scored on Logan Tribble’s two-out single to left field, giving the Growlers a 1-0 lead.

Kenosha answered immediately in the bottom half. Brian Gould was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a wild pitch and came home on Noah Alvarez’s double to center field, tying the game at 1.

From there, Jake Storey settled in and gave the Kingfish exactly what they needed. After allowing the first-inning run, Storey worked a clean second, got through a scoreless third and erased a leadoff single in the fourth with a double play. He finished with five innings of one-run baseball, allowing four hits while striking out six. Storey earned the win, improving to 4-2.

The offense backed him up in waves.

In the third, Jackson Brewer singled and Alvarez walked in front of Bennett Shealor, who delivered one of the biggest swings of the night. Shealor ripped a two-run triple to left field, scoring Brewer and Alvarez to give Kenosha a 3-1 lead.

The Kingfish added another run in the fourth. Matthew Cormier walked, Ezra Essex also walked, and Will Matuszak drove in Cormier with a single to center field to make it 4-1.

Kenosha then broke the game open in the fifth. Brewer doubled to right field, Alvarez walked and Hunter Snyder singled to center to bring Brewer home. Cormier reached on an error that allowed Alvarez to score, and Crete Slattery later brought in Snyder, pushing the lead to 7-1.

Snyder stayed in the middle of the action in the seventh, doubling to right and scoring on another Kalamazoo error to make it 8-1. He finished 2-for-5 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI. Brewer also had a multi-hit night, going 2-for-4 with a double, two runs and a hit-by-pitch.

Kalamazoo did not go away quietly. The Growlers scored twice in the eighth, then made it uncomfortable in the ninth with three more runs. Chase Thomas doubled home two runs, Tribble added another hit, and an error allowed the Growlers to get within two.

But Jason Ban came in with the tying run in scoring position and ended it, striking out Isaac Vanderwoude to lock down his first save of the summer.

Top to bottom, the Kingfish got contributions. Alvarez doubled, scored twice and drove in a run. Shealor drove in two. Snyder had two hits. Cormier, Slattery and Matuszak each brought in a run. Storey gave Kenosha five strong innings, and Ban finished it when the Growlers made their final push.

Kenosha continues its four-game homestand Sunday afternoon against Royal Oak. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m. CDT at Historic Simmons Field.

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