Madison, WI — After the Chinooks (4-2) lost their 2024 home opener Friday versus the Madison Mallards (3-3), starting pitcher Luke Hansel took matters into his own hands. He wrestled with the Mallards in the beginning of his start, allowing two earned runs in the first two innings, but held the lineup hitless for three straight innings, in each of which the Chinooks scored two runs. The Chinooks got their revenge for Friday with a 7-4 win in Madison to move to 4-2 in the 2024 season.

Hansel, a Milwaukee native, needed 27 pitches to get through his first inning on the mound. A Mallard scored in each of his first two innings, but Hansel bounced back incredibly while the Chinooks’ offense warmed up.

The UW-Milwaukee pitcher finished with 5.0 IP, 85 pitches thrown and just two runs allowed.

To help Hansel get the win, Lakeshore scraped across a run in the top of the second as Billy Scaldeferri hit an RBI single to left field.

In the top of the third inning, Prince Deboskie did his job as the Chinooks’ leadoff hitter and got on base, eventually scoring on a Dominic Kibler single. Two batters later, Josh Outlaw hit a sacrifice fly to score Kibler and give Lakeshore the lead, 3-2.

The next inning, Lakeshore took advantage of two mistakes by Mallards’ pitching, first, a balk, and then a hit by pitch to plate the Chinooks’ fourth run of the evening. Then, a passed ball allowed Gabe Roessler to sprint before the pitcher could cover home and extend the lead to 5-2 for the Chinooks.

In the top of the fifth, the ‘Nooks tacked on two more with a Jace Fowler single to center and a Deboskie sac fly. The frame would grow Lakeshore’s advantage to five runs and give the bullpen a significant lead midway through the Saturday contest.

Spotted a 7-4 lead in the Mallards’ half of the seventh, Chinooks’ reliever Arthur Liebau entered the game. He retired the first two batters on two pitches and then after a weakly-hit single finished the inning with a strikeout. Liebau needed just eight pitches to finish the seventh.

The eighth was a similar type of Chinooks’ domination. Liebau faced the minimum, forcing a double play, third to first on just nine pitches, to maintain the three-run edge.

Lakeshore threatened to score more runs in the top of the ninth when Josh Outlaw – who has a .429 average through 21 at bats in the young season – pushed a single to left. Though no runs scored, the threat maintained the momentum for the ‘Nooks.

Two strikeouts helped Liebau ease through a relatively straightforward bottom of the ninth. Liebau induced a fly ball to right to end the game and move the Chinooks to 4-2 on the young 2024 season.

The Chinooks suffered a tough loss in Friday’s 7-5 home-opening loss but can move to 5-2 Sunday against the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters.

First pitch against the Rafters is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. at Moonlight Graham Field as the Chinooks travel back home for the afternoon tilt.

Article written by David Jacobs.