Madison, WI – July 29th, 2016. Madison (10-10, 33-23) was able to use one swing of the bat to top the Green Bay Bullfrogs (12-8, 27-28) on Friday night, besting the Bullfrogs by a score of 6-5 in ten frames. The win was Madison’s fourth against Green Bay this summer.
Green Bay would jump out to an early lead in the contest, tagging Madison starter Mike Byrne (Florida) for three runs in the top of the first. The damage came via a Quincy Nieporte (Florida State) three-run home run four batters into the game, as he smashed a first-pitch fastball to left-center.
Nelson Maldonado (Florida) would inch the Mallards closer to the Bullfrogs, singling home Nico Hoerner (Stanford) on an 0-2 count. Madison’s first three batters of the game were all able to reach base off of Green Bay starter Harrisen Egly (Columbia), who would eventually pitch seven complete frames.
The Mallards would take the lead in the fourth, using a bit of two-out magic to jump ahead. Madison hit four consecutive two-out singles off of Egly in the process, recovering from an early deficit with a three-run frame. The one-run lead would then double in the fifth, with Nate Palace (Valparaiso) hitting his fifth home run in 12 days to give Madison a 5-4 advantage.
The Bullfrogs would add a run in the sixth, scoring on a Hill Alexander (Midland College) RBI single to the right side. Green Bay was unable to capitalize on a two on, nobody out situation, settling for one in the frame. Their clutch moment would come in the eighth, as Jonah Davis (California) hit a no-doubt home run to dead centerfield off of reliever Troy Bacon (Santa Fe College). The game would progress through the ninth, setting the stage for fireworks in extra frames.
Green Bay brought in a new pitcher for extra innings, turning to right-hander Jeremy Graf (Flagler College) in the tenth. Graf would only throw one pitch, as Nelson Maldonado crushed the first-pitch fastball into the second deck in left field. The shot would give Madison a 6-5 victory, as they walked-off against Green Bay for the second time this summer. Maldonado started celebrating as soon as he left the batter’s box, giving everyone at Warner Park a reason to cheer.
“I knew it was gone as soon as it left the bat,” said Maldonado. “It was the first walk-off I’ve ever hit in my life.”
After pitching a perfect top of the tenth, Alex Smith (North Florida) earned the win. Despite only throwing one pitch, Jeremy Graf suffered the loss. Mike Byrne took a no-decision in his outing, after recovering nicely from his first inning adversity. Byrne went five plus innings, striking out seven in the process. He turned in yet another quality start for the Mallards after falling behind early.
“I just tried to keep pounding the strike zone,” said the right-hander. “I knew I needed to keep my team in the game and minimize the damage.”
The Mallards will take on the Green Bay Bullfrogs from the Duck Pond Saturday, July 30th, at 6:35 pm. The game will feature a Democratic vs. Republican Maynard Bobblelection giveaway. 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.
