Madison, Wis. – With a series sweep of the Kalamazoo Growlers in their rear-view mirror, the Madison Mallards edged the Wisconsin Woodchucks by a 4-3 mark Thursday night at Warner Park.
The Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison Big Win of the Night lifted Madison's record to 3-0 to open the 2015 Northwoods League schedule, and with a loss by the Lakeshore Chinooks, moved the Mallards into sole possession of first place in the South Division.
Chris Tschida (Western Illinois) helped carve the path leading toward Madison's third consecutive victory, going 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles and a game-high two runs batted in. Designated hitter Scott Tyler (Ball State) contributed with a two-bagger of his own — and two runs scored — en route to a 1-for-2 batting line and two walks. Overall, the Mallards went 9-for-30 (.300) with four walks and two stolen bases.
In his summer collegiate debut, left-handed pitcher Grant Spranger (Southeastern CC) tossed five complete innings of one-hit ball, allowing two runs — one earned — with two walks and one strikeout. Martin Andonov (Bulgaria), Tyler Frohwirth (Minnesota State) and Vince Arobio (Pacific) combined for three innings of one-run ball and five strikeouts in relief, eventually setting up Mike Kaelin (Buffalo) for his first save of the season.
With their unblemished record in hand, Donnie Scott and company will turn their attention toward the finale of the home-and-away series with Wisconsin, which is scheduled for Friday at 7:05 p.m. in Wausau, Wis. Nick Gruener (Harvard) will receive his first start of the season for the Mallards. Tune in to ESPN Madison 100.5 FM to catch all the action from Athletic Park.
Single-game tickets are on sale now. To purchase tickets, log onto MallardsBaseball.com, call 608-246-4277 or stop by the Mallards ticket office.
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The Madison Mallards are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 22nd season of summer collegiate baseball in 2015, the Northwoods 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.MallardsBaseball.com
