With no outs in the ninth, Brett Siddall cranked a home run to deep right center field. The Chinooks defeated the Loggers by the final score of 5-4.
Coach Eddy Morgan said his team took much better at-bats on Sunday. “As long as the guys stay positive…we have enough talent to make a run here,” he said.
Connor Jones (2-0), a product of the University product, picked up the win in his fifth (fourth relief) appearance of the summer. He had two strikeouts.
Morgan was impressed by his pitching staff. “Kruczynski pitched a heck of a game, he got some bad breaks…for the most part he grinded it out and pitched tremendously,” he said. “Brummett came in and threw strikes, got early outs…and Conner Jones keeps getting better and better.”
Lakeshore put two runs across to take the lead in the second. First baseman Michael Morman (Valparaiso) hit a leadoff single off La Crosse starter Brian Keller. Catcher Carter White (Memphis) had an RBI double that scored Morman.
White moved to third on a passed ball by Keller. He then scored on a double-play groundout issued to Brett Siddall (Canisius).
Infielders Brant Valach (Eastern Illinois) and Morman had consecutive singles in the fourth. Valach scored on an RBI groundout by Luke Meeteer (UW-Milwaukee). The Chinooks led 3-0.
The Loggers scored two runs in the fifth off Evan Kruczynski (East Carolina). Designated-hitter Kevin Zak started the inning off with a basehit. Zak was driven home on a single by Taylor Kohlwey. Catcher Adrian Chacon advanced on another single and Jerrod Bravo drove him across home plate. La Crosse trailed 3-2.
Zak went 2-4 in the game. He had a two-RBI triple in the sixth, which gave La Crosse a 4-3 lead.
Morman had another single in the sixth. A double by Siddall tied the game at four.
In a no-decision, the left-hander Kruczynski threw six innings. He gave up four runs off seven hits. He also struck out six before being replaced by Garrett Brummett (Wichita State). Brummett pitched two shutout innings.
La Crosse righty Gordan Cardenas (0-2) was charged with the loss.
The Chinooks face the Madison Mallards in a doubleheader on Monday, June 16. First game is at 4:00 p.m. The second game will begin at its originally scheduled time of 6:35 p.m.
The team will go on a five-game road trip against the Mallards, Kingfish and Woodchucks. They will return home on Sunday, June 22 for a six-game home stand.
The Lakeshore Chinooks are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 21st season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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 115 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (DET) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (WAS), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Allen Craig (STL) and Ben Zobrist (TB). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League YouTube channel<http://northwoodsleague.com/video/>. For more information, visit www.lakeshorechinooks.com.
