Madison, Wis. (August 2) – After outscoring their opponents by a combined 25-7 mark en route to two convincing victories to begin the weekend, the upstart Madison Mallards (17-11, 37-26) will look to secure their third straight win and fourth series sweep of the Wisconsin Woodchucks (10-18, 22-41) on Sunday when they travel to Wausau, Wis., for a 5:05 p.m. tilt at Athletic Park. Tonight’s affair will be the Mallards final road game prior to Madison’s home-stand to begin the work week, which will encompass four matchups in five days alongside Tuesday’s Major League Dreams Showcase.

Fueled by a dominant performance – 7 IP, 6 H, ER, 2 BB, 6 K – from Andrew Beckwith (Coastal Carolina) in Saturday’s 6-1 triumph over Wisconsin at the Duck Pond, field manager Donnie Scott will turn to Sterling Sharp (Drury University) to supply a similar outing as Madison’s starter tonight in Wausau. Sharp, a 6-foot-4 right-hander from Farmington Hills, Mich., made his summer debut out of the bullpen on July 30, allowing one earned run over 0.1 innings against the Bullfrogs. Sharp compiled 56.1 total innings for Madison’s staff last summer, posting a 4.47 ERA with 41 strikeouts.

• Joining Elite Company – Mallards outfielder Anthony Gonsolin (St. Mary’s College), who will showcase his skills to a flurry of scouts in Tuesday’s showcase at Warner Park, has become just the sixth qualifying Northwoods League hitter since 2009 to maintain at least a .300 batting average with 10 home runs and 15 stolen bases in a single season. Gonsolin is the second Madison player to accomplish the impressive feat in that span, after Tyler Marincov batted .312 with 13 round-trippers and 24 stolen bases as a member of the Mallards 2012 roster.
• Playoff Positioning – Madison’s victory coupled with losses from La Crosse and Green Bay on Saturday increased the Mallards hold on second place in the South Division’s second-half standings to one game, along with strengthening their hold on second place in the division’s overall standings to an identical amount. If the regular season ended today, the Mallards would host the Bullfrogs in a one-game playoff at Warner Park to begin postseason play. Game times for postseason contests will be made available by the league in coming days.

The Mallards will return to the Duck Pond on Monday, August 3 at 7:05 p.m. against the Alexandria Blue Anchors. Monday’s contest will be Circus World night with live circus entertainment before, during and after the game. For tickets, call the Mallards Ticket Office at 608-246-4277 or visit www.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.