Madison, WI – June 22, 2016. Mitchell Kilkenny (Texas A&M) looked sharp in his season debut, as he pitched five strong innings in the Mallards (14-8) 4-2 win over the Kalamazoo Growlers (13-11). Madison was able to score four runs on only five hits, while Kalamazoo tallied two runs on nine hits. Strong defensive play from the Mallards thwarted a lot of chances by the Growlers, as Madison posted their first clean sheet in four games.
Madison jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first, thanks to an error that brought home an unearned run. With a leadoff double and a wild pitch, Nico Hoerner (Stanford) was standing at third with no outs, allowing a Matt McCann (Fairleigh Dickinson) grounder to score him.
In the fourth inning, Zach Jarrett (UNC-Charlotte) hammered a 1-0 fastball to left field, hitting a car as he rounded the bases. It was the North Carolina native’s first home run at the Duck Pond and third of the season. He was excited to finally hit a long ball in front of the home crowd.
“The fans here show us love no matter what,” said Jarrett. “But it felt good to hit one out at the Duck Pond.”
Kilkenny seemed to have everything working in his first start as a Mallard, allowing six hits and striking out four in his outing while walking zero, en route to the win. Standout defensive plays by Hoerner would allow Kilkenny to breath easy, including a sliding catch at the foul line and a bullet of a throw to nail a runner at third base. Kilkenny would hand the ball to his bullpen after the fifth, but was able to reflect on the atmosphere that the Duck Pond will offer him for the rest of the summer.
“It felt like playing in the minors with all of the fun entertainment going on,” said Kilkenny. “The fans were awesome.”
Alex Smith (North Florida) would come in to pitch the sixth, allowing two runs after recording the first two outs of the inning on just five pitches. Luke Shilling (Illinois) would replace him with two outs, striking out the last batter on a beautifully painted pitch on the outside half. Shilling would return in the seventh to work a scoreless frame, preserving the 3-2 lead.
Madison was able to capitalize on more defensive miscues by Kalamazoo in their half of the seventh, as Hoerner was able to score from second on a throwing error trying to get the runner at first.
Logan Sherer (UNC-Charlotte) pitched a scoreless eighth to hold on to a 4-2 lead, giving the ball to Troy Bacon (Santa Fe College) to earn the save. Bacon was able to bounce back from his outing a night ago, in which he took the loss, to record his third save of 2016.
Grant Wolfram (Central Michigan) took the loss, as he allowed two earned runs in five innings, walking one in the process. He only allowed four hits but was put in tough situations by his defense, as the Growlers recorded two errors. He struck out seven batters on 88 pitches.
The Mallards will return to the Duck Pond tomorrow, Thursday, June 23rd, to take on the Wisconsin Woodchucks at 7:05 pm. The game will feature The Human Cannonball, presented by Budweiser. It will also be George Foreman Grill Night. Tickets are available for purchase by visiting MallardsBaseball.com, calling the Mallards ticket office at 608-246-4277, or stopping in the ticket office at 2920 N Sherman Ave.
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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 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball, 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 150 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 (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.mallardsbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store and set the Mallards as your favorite team.
