Madison, Wis. – The Madison Mallards (16-5) capitalized off of strong starting pitching and a steady offense to cruise to a 9-4 win over the Rockford Rivets (12-9) on Tuesday Night at the Duck Pond. The Mallards were led by starting pitcher Justin Watland, a San Jose State righty who worked efficiently through 6.0 innings. The Madison bats aided Watland in a big way, providing a total of nine runs on eleven hits, scoring in five different innings.
Turning Point
After the Madison offense flew out to an early 3-0 lead on RBI knocks by Jake Randa (NW Florida State) and David Vinksy (Northwood), Watland went to work. The Mallards starter allowed only two hits over the game’s first four innings and ended up needing only 72 pitches to last 6.0 innings while striking out seven and issuing only one free pass.
Meanwhile, the steady Mallards offense kept adding on as Watland was helped by a Jesse Forestell(Western Michigan) home run in the fourth and a Vinsky RBI double in the fifth. By the top of the sixth the Mallards held a 5-0 lead and a two-out single put a man on for the Rivets.
Jacob Vander Wal then hit a deep drive to right center field where Randa fielded the ball off of the wall, threw to Madison second baseman Trevor Schwecke (UW-Milwaukee), who then delivered a perfect relay throw to nab the Rivets runner at the plate. The play kept the Rivets off of the board and killed the Rockford offensive momentum.
Top Mallards
- Mallards left fielder Drew Campbell (Louisville) had his best offensive showing of the season, finishing the night a home run away from the cycle. Campbell had a single, a double and a triple while also scoring three runs and knocking in another.
- Madison right fielder Jake Randa had a day at the plate, going 2-for-4 while knocking in two runs and also scoring a pair. Randa now has a league-leading 24 RBI this summer.
- Mallards first baseman David Vinskyripped a pair of doubles and knocked in three runs while also working a walk. Vinsky has now knocked in five runs over Madison’s last two ballgames.
Quoteables
Field Manager Donnie Scott on Drew Campbell’s performance in the leadoff spot…
“I think Drew Campbell is setting the tone. I’ve always liked that leadoff hitter being aggressive. Every championship I’ve ever won; I’ve had that kind of guy. I want the guy, if he can rip that first fastball right back up the middle, that’s what I like.”
On the big 9-4-2 relay that kept Rockford off of the board…
“We went over that. We talked about it, I like my middle infielders on double/possible triples to get their rear ends out there and make it short throw for the outfielders and a long one for the infielder. It worked to perfection.”
Next Up
The Mallards head to Rockford tomorrow night to finish their two-game set. The Mallards will return to the Duck Pond on Wednesday, June 27 for a game against the Rivets at 12:05 PM. For tickets and more information visit mallardsbaseball.com. Make sure to catch every Mallards game game on The Zone, 1670 AM and 96.7 FM.
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The Madison Mallards are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 23-year-old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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 170 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM). All league games are viewable live via theNorthwoods League portal. For more information, visitwww.mallardsbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Mallards as your favorite team.
