Mequon, WI – The Lakeshore Chinooks came out of the All-Star break hot, defeating the Green Bay Bullfrogs on Thursday by a score of 6-3. As the team looks to keep their playoff hopes alive, they traveled back to Green Bay on Friday looking to go for the series sweep. The team could not do so, however, falling 10-7.

The Chinooks were the first to score, jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. The always-consistent Anthony Massicci (Canisius) led off the frame with a base hit, but the next two batters were retired by Green Bay starter Parker Hamilton (Florida Gulf Coast). That hardly mattered for Lakeshore, however, as Doug Kraeger (Richmond) came through with a two-run blast over the left field wall. That was good for Kraeger's sixth homer of the year and increased his RBI total to 32. 

The Bullfrogs did not let the lead last for long, as they came back in the bottom half of the inning to take the advantage. Against Chinooks starter Kevin Long (Lehigh), Rob Paller (Columbia) reached base on an error by third baseman Zarley Zalewski (Kent State). He would later come around to score thanks to Brian Celsi (California-Berkley), who singled him home. After Matthew De La Rosa (Lenoir-Rhyne) singled, a base knock off the bat of Paul Jacobson (South Dakota State) brought in Celsi, and De La Rosa also scored on the play after a throwing error by Jack Benninghoff (Arkansas). 

Again, the lead was short-lived with the Chinooks tying things up in the top of the third. The run came courtesy of Lucas Raley (Lake Erie College), who slammed a leadoff home run to dead center field, his 12th of the year. Kraeger followed up with a single, chasing Hamilton from the game, but the Chinooks did not score again and the game stayed at 3-3.

Green Bay came right back in the bottom of the third to regain the lead. Jacobson and Mason George (McLennan Community College) accounted for two runs after each knocked an RBI single. The third run of the frame came when Jacobson stole home to make it a 6-3 game, though it was not a straight steal after he advanced when Chinooks catcher Mark Kolozsvary (Florida) unsuccessfully tried to throw out Jack Strunc (Washington State), who was stealing second. That was the final inning for Long, who gave up six runs, three earned, on seven hits. 

Lakeshore brought on reliever Teddy Klingsporn (Luther College) for the fourth, but Green Bay added to their lead. Logan Taylor (Louisville) began the inning with a double, stole third and then scored on a wild pitch. Klingsporn did stay on to throw a scoreless fifth before being replaced by Zach Reeg (Augustana) in the sixth. 

Reeg fired a shutout seventh, but back out in the eighth he ran into a jam, letting the bases get loaded with one out. A base hit from Strunc drove in two runners, extending the Bullfrogs' lead to six, and the Lakeshore coaching staff then elected to go to Parker Sanburn (Arkansas) with runners on second and third and one away. Sanburn let an inherited runner score to make it 10-3 but allowed nothing of his own in the frame. Lincoln Voss (Illinois State) was the final reliever the Chinooks used as he threw a scoreless eighth. 

The Lakeshore offense was held scoreless by the Green Bay bullpen until the ninth, when Zalewski smacked an RBI single. A two-RBI triple from Jake Romano (Miami-Ohio) made it 10-6, and Kraeger added a triple of his own to make it 10-7, but that was where it would ultimately finish. 

The Chinooks return home on Saturday for the start of a two-game weekend series against the Madison Mallards.

The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 21 year old summer collegiate 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 120 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (WAS), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (OAK). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.lakeshorechinooks.com.