Published On: July 17th, 2018

Madison, Wis. –  The Madison Mallards (5-8, 33-16) took both games of a doubleheader against the Lakeshore Chinooks (8-5, 24-24) at Warner Park on Tuesday evening. The Mallards took game one, a resumed game from last Friday, by a score of 7-1 before combining to no-hit the Chinooks and win in walk-off fashion in game two.

 

Game One- Mallards-7 | Chinooks- 1

 

The Mallards inherited a 1-0 lead in the second inning as they resumed play from last Friday’s game that was postponed due to rain. The Mallards offense used a big sixth inning to cruise to a 7-1 win.

Turning Point

With the Mallards leading 2-1 in the fifth inning, Dustin Saenzstranded the bases loaded with a strikeout. After preserving the one-run lead, the Mallards added on in the sixth inning. After Justice Bigbie (Western Carolina) drew a leadoff walk, the Madison offense rattled off a stretch of four straight hits. Trevor Boone (Oklahoma State) and Drew Campbell(Louisville) both knocked in runs before Trevor Schwecke(UW-Milwaukee) delivered a three-run bomb to give the Mallards a 7-1 lead. The offensive explosion gave the Mallards a commanding lead as they moved to the game’s late innings.

Top Mallards

  • Starting pitcher Dustin Saenz (Texas A&M) held the Chinooks in check, tossing 5.0 innings of one-run ball and earning the win. Saenz picked up a key strikeout in the fifth inning to strand the bases loaded and preserve a 2-1 Mallards lead.
  • Infielder Trevor Schwecke hit a three run home run and ended the ballgame 2-for-5 with two runs scored.
  • Catcher Cal Greenfield (Florida) went 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI double in the Madison victory.

 

 

 

Game Two- Mallards- 2 | Chinooks- 1

Mallards starter Brian Morrell(Notre Dame) andJonah Smith(Creighton) combined to no-hit the Chinooks and the Mallards came out victorious thanks to a Trevor Boone (Oklahoma State) walk-off double in the bottom of the seventh. The Mallards no-hitter was their first as a team since August 1, 2010 when Rusty Shellhorn no-hit the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters. Morrell and Smith posted the first no-hitter in the NWL since the Mallards were no-hit in Battle Creek last summer on July 7.

Key Moments

Mallards starter Brian Morrell was mowing through the Chinooks order, not allowing a baserunner until the third inning. Morrell ended up working 5.0 innings, struck out four, and did not allow a single hit. However, one run did score after a walk, a stolen base and an error. The Mallards earned their early-inning run on a second inning solo home run by Drew Ober (UNC Charlotte).

The Mallards pitching staff kept working out of jams as Morrellstranded runners on first and third in the fifth before Jonah Smith left the leadoff man on second in the sixth inning after recording three straight outs.

With the game tied in the bottom of the sixth, the first two Mallards batters reached base before the Lakeshore outfield combined to make three run-saving plays. Trevor Schwecke flew out to the left field wall, Jake Randa was retired on a sliding catch down the leftfield line and David Vinskywas put out on a diving catch by the right fielder in front of the Great Dane Duck Blind. The game was still knotted at one after six innings.

Meanwhile, Madison pitchers Morrell and Smith still had not allowed a single Chinook hit. Smith worked a 1-2-3 top of the seventh inning that featured two strikeouts and the Mallards headed to the bottom of the seventh with a chance to win it with the sticks.

Drew Ober reached on a leadoff single and was moved to second on a sac bunt before Tyler Plantier was intentionally walked. Trevor Boone then delivered a walk-off double into the leftfield corner. The Mallards took the ballgame in exciting fashion and held the Chinooks without a hit.

Top Mallards

  • Starter Brian Morrell pitched 5.0 innings of no-hit ball, striking out four and walking three while allowing one unearned run.
  • Reliever Jonah Smith pitched 2.0 hitless innings and struck out two while earning the win.
  • Outfielder Drew Ober went 2-for-3 at the dish and scored both of the Mallards runs. His solo shot got the Mallards on the board in the second inning.

Quoteables

Field Manager Donnie Scott on the combined no-hitter… “They threw strikes when they had to. I thought they pitched effectively. They got the breaking balls over when they needed to. They did the job and there was good pace to the game.”

On the team’s focus…“The intensity has gone up. We were a tick off after we won the first half. Now, they’re getting it back. We’re figuring things out.”

 

Next Up

The Mallards travel to Lakeshore to take on the Chinooks again tomorrow at 6:35 PM. The Mallards will return home on Friday to take on the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters at 7:05 PM. Gates will open at 5:30 PM and the game features Pyrotechniq Fire Troupe and Wisconsin Lottery Night. For tickets and more information visit mallardsbaseball.com. Make sure to catch every Mallards 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.

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