Madison, Wis. (June 19) – The Madison Mallards (13-11) opened their key two-game home series against the Kenosha Kingfish (19-6) with a 3-0 victory Friday night at the Duck Pond. It was the third consecutive victory for Mallards field manager Donnie Scott and company, who moved into sole possession of third place in the Northwoods League’s South Division.
A.J. Bogucki’s (North Carolina) third starting appearance of the summer was also his best, tossing six scoreless innings of three-hit ball with no walks and five strikeouts against arguably the league’s most potent offense. The 6-foot-5 right-hander’s performance put Madison’s bullpen in position to succeed later in the contest, as Vince Arobio (Pacific) and Mike Kaelin (Buffalo) combined to toss three shutout innings to eviscerate any chance of a comeback from Kenosha.
But for as impressive as Madison’s pitching was, its bats were also key to the win. Brian Rodemoyer’s (Illinois State) triple in the bottom of the second led to a run later in the frame, giving the Mallards an early 1-0 lead. Jonathan Quintana’s (Barry University) double plated Cameron Frost (Washington State) in the fourth, and Anthony Gonsolin’s (St. Mary’s College) solo home run – his third of the summer – gave Madison a 3-0 lead it would not relinquish.
“The pitching was outstanding,” said Scott after the game. “Bogucki got back into his correct tempo. He didn’t look the same (earlier in the year), and he fixed it and got it done. I think a little bit of those (early struggles) had to do with his spring; he only threw about 16 innings or so…Arobio struggled a little bit with his command but he battled out there and Kaelin did his thing. That’s a good hitting ball-club over there. Pitching was definitely the difference tonight.”
With another Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison ‘Big Win’ of the Night in their back pocket, the Mallards will turn their collective attention toward the Saturday’s series finale – scheduled for 6:05 p.m. – with Kenosha. Saturday will be Military Appreciation Night at Warner Park, featuring post-game fireworks presented by Hy-Vee. For tickets, call the Mallards ticket office at 608-246-4277 or visit MallardsBaseball.com for more information.
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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.
