Wausau, WI – June 18, 2009. Derek Self, welcome to Madison. Two days after arriving to the Capital City, the soon-to-be sophomore Louisville pitcher didn’t disappoint in his first start, shutting down the Wisconsin Woodchucks to give the Mallards a 4-1 victory Thursday night in Wausau.
Self (1-0) only allowed three hits during his six innings of work while striking out three batters and walking just one. He was in control of the game from the very first pitch and didn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning on a base-knock by second baseman Mike Mutcheson (New Mexico JC).
J.R. Graham (Santa Clara) relieved Self in the seventh inning and threw three innings for his first save of the season, while allowing one earned run on a two-out RBI single by Troy Frazier (Kentucky) in the seventh frame.
Coming into the contest the Mallards (15-6) offense knew they had their work cut out for themselves in facing right-hander Bobby Pritchett (1-2) (Central Arkansas), who threw a no-hitter in his last start on June 12 against the Green Bay Bullfrogs.
They were certainly up to the challenge and were able to tag Pritchett for four runs during his 5.1 innings of work, including a two-RBI night off two solo home runs by designated hitter Joe Patterson (Texas A&M). Those shots came in the fourth and sixth innings.
Second baseman Mark Ginther (Oklahoma State) also added a solo shot in the second inning, his second of the year.
The win guarantees the Mallards at least a share of first-place heading into tomorrow’s contest to conclude a home-and-home series versus the Woodchucks at the “Duck Pond.” At the time of this writing the Eau Claire Express and Battle Creek Bombers contest was underway but delayed because of rain. Tomorrow’s first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
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Fans, Friday the Human Cannonball David “The Bullet” Smith returns to the “Duck Pond” for a post-game launch! Also, it’ll be Wolverine/X-Men Night with a special appearance by the Marvel Comics character. We’ll also hand out Oscar Mayer Reusable Grocery Bags to the first 1,000 fans and General Communications T-shirts to the first 500 fans!
Great seats are still available for Friday’s game…click here to purchase tickets or please call us at 608.246.4277 today! After tomorrow’s game the next home contest will be Saturday, June 27.
