Mequon, Wisconsin – After a tough four-game losing streak this past week, it looks like the Chinooks are back to their winning ways. In the second game of a two-game series against the Traverse City Pit Spitters, the Chinooks won a close back-and-forth game. In a 12-11 ball game, there was no pitching to be found. The bats were alive in a big way for this matchup. Tyler Gronert started for the Chinooks and gave up an early RBI double to Colin Summerhill in the 1st inning. The Chinooks offense would give Gronert a bunch of early-run support.

In the bottom of the 1st, the Chinooks first seven hitters all reached base. Matt Deprey started the action with a 2-RBI double. Aiden Longwell and Nathan Aide hit back-to-back RBI doubles right after Deprey. Joey Spence also hit an RBI single to give the Chinooks an early 5-1 lead heading into the 2nd. Zach Storbakken and Matt Deprey reached base and both scored on wild pitches. A convincing 7-1 early lead may have felt like the Chinooks would get an easy win to sweep the Pit Spitters.

The Pit Spitters were on a seven game winning steak before coming to Lakeshore. In the third inning, it looked like that team finally showed up. Gronert struggled with giving up a walk and two singles to start the inning. Colin Summerhill delivered two more RBIs and Marshall Toole had a 2-RBI single that cut the deficit down to 7-5. Glenn Miller was able to reach base on an error that gave the Pit Spitters an extra life. They capitalized on the mistake as Trey Truitt had an RBI sac fly to make it 7-6.

The Chinooks lost their lead in the top of the 4th. Two errors in the inning by the Chinooks defense helped the Pit Spitters score 4 runs. Camden Traficante, Brennen Dorighi, and Colin Summerhill each had an RBI. The final run of the inning scored off an error. A 10-7 lead was something most Chinooks fans didn’t expect after the hot start. The Chinooks got going again in the bottom of the 5th. Nathan Aide and Joey Spence hit back-to-back singles and Peyton Sanderson was hit by a pitch. Bryce Stober beat out a double play to get an RBI on a fielder’s choice as the Chinooks trailed 10-8.

The Pit Spitters tried to pick off Joey Spence at third base, but that backfired. A bad throw led to Spence scoring and it was a one-run ball game. Ty Olejnik continued his hot start with the Chinooks as he hit a game-tying RBI single. With 20 runs in the first five innings, it looked like this game would continue to be an offensive onslaught. Matthias Haas hit the game-leading RBI on a clutch double. Bryce Stober got his second RBI on a bases-loaded walk to give the Chinooks a multi-run lead again at 12-10.

There was trouble brewing for the Chinooks in the 7th inning as Evan Orzech had an RBI groundout to drop the Chinooks lead down to 12-11. Camden Traficante went 6 for 6 during the game with 4 singles and 2 doubles. Marc Lidd got out of the early jam and was dominant on the mound in the 8th and 9th.  The Pit Spitters offense went cold at the wrong time as Lidd finished the job with a 3-inning save. The win gets the Chinooks back to a tie for 3rd place in the Great Lakes West division. With a 12-11 record, they trail Wisconsin Rapids by 6 games, but will continue their push for the playoffs. The team heads to Madison to take on the Mallards Monday night. First pitch is set for 6:35 pm.