For the Lakeshore Chinooks (3-1), the 2024 season started out with three wins. It was the first time the team had accomplished a 3-0 start in a dozen years.
Thursday’s game against the Royal Oak (MI) Leprechauns (1-3) looked for about half an inning like it could become the very first four-game winning streak in franchise history. The Chinooks had a two-run opening frame highlighted by a Dominic Kibler double to center. After that, things went south quickly.
The Chinooks fell 19-10 to the Leprechauns behind a complete offensive domination by Royal Oak. The Leprechauns scored at least two runs in five of eight innings Thursday, and although the Chinooks started strong at the plate, it was a struggle to find pitching in the morning game.
Starting pitcher Jovan Gill allowed two free passes and hit a batter in the first to load the bases with no outs, but eventually looked to be out of the inning after inducing a ground ball. A Chinooks fielding error on the ground ball allowed the runner to reach base and give Royal Oak the lead, and from there it was a two-out avalanche. Four more runs scored in the first for the Leprechauns, giving them a 7-2 advantage after the first inning.
The Chinooks lineup went cold in the innings that followed. An eleven-up, eleven-down stretch by the Leprechauns pitching staff from the second to the fifth thwarted any comeback attempts by the ‘Nooks.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Leprechauns continued their excellent contact hitting with four straight singles to open the frame. Doing his best to keep Lakeshore in it, Chinooks shortstop Gabe Roessler snared a liner and threw out the runner on first before he could tag up to finish the inning.
In the bottom of the sixth, Royal Oak added two more runs to balloon its lead to 15-2. Yet in what was mostly a day to forget, Chinooks center fielder Prince Deboskie made a memorable diving catch on the full sprint to close the inning, showing us a taste of his electric speed.
Despite the massive deficit, there came a silver lining in the Chinooks’ half of the eighth.
Deboskie was one of several Chinooks that helped make the final score a bit more respectable in the team’s seven-run outburst of an inning. After Deboskie drew a four-pitch RBI walk, Roessler cleared the bases with a 3-RBI double to give the ‘Nooks nine runs on the day.
Overall, the game saw 34 hits between the two teams. Though the 19-10 loss wasn’t what Lakeshore was looking for after such a wonderful three games on the road, the Chinooks showed grittiness in the late innings, something they can take home with them tomorrow.
The Chinooks host the Madison Mallards in their home opener Friday evening at 6:35 p.m. (CST) at Moonlight Graham Field in Mequon, WI, formerly known as Kapco Park.
