Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. – The Madison Mallards (21-6) cruised to a 10-3 win over the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters Monday night in the sixth game of their seven-game road swing. With Kalamazoo’s 7-4 loss at Fond du Lac, the Mallards now have a two-game lead over the Growlers with nine left to play in the first half. Starting pitcher Justin Watland (San Jose State) allowed only two bloop hits and one unearned run in seven innings of work against the Rafters, walking none and fanning seven. Watland has now spun 17 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run.
Turning Point
The Mallards put away a tight 3-1 game by scoring six runs after two were out in the top of the seventh. The first two runs crossed on a bases loaded walk to Trevor Schwecke(UW Milwaukee), and an RBI single by Max Hewitt(Oklahoma State). Mike Aiello(UW Whitewater) delivered the crushing blow with a bases clearing three-RBI double which rolled all the way to the wall in the right centerfield gap. The Madison scoring was completed by Tyler Plantier (Richmond) who launched his sixth home run down the left field line in the eighth inning.
Top Mallards
- Brian Martinez (Connors State) finished off the Rafters with a three-up, three-down ninth
- Mike Aiello was solid behind the plate and had two hits and three RBIs
- Trevor Schwecke had two hits, scored three runs, had an RBI, and reached base four times in five plate appearances
- Tyler Plantier added a single to his home run blast, and has eight hits in his last three games
Next Up
Madison completes its seven game road trip Tuesday night with another game in Wisconsin Rapids. The Mallards return to Warner Park Wednesday for a 12:05 pm lunch special against the Rockford Rivets. The second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader will be played in Rockford at 7:05 pm.
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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.
