Following their first off-day of the season the Mallards hosted the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters at the Duck Pond and lost a thriller of a game by a final of 10-9.

The Rafters got off to a great start offensively and went up 3-0 by scoring a run in the first and two in the second on a two-run single from Hank Zeisler.

The Mallards then got two back right away in the second inning on a deep two-run bomb from Cam Cratic (Missouri State). It was his second home run of the season, both coming against the Rafters here in Madison.

The Rafters then took a big lead as they poured on five runs in the top of 4th. They batted around and took an 8-2 lead.

The Mallards did not go down without a fight. They tacked on a run in the 4th on an RBI-single from Cratic and then scored three runs in the fifth on RBI extra base hits from Alex Iadisernia (Elon) and Bryant Shellenbarger (Akron).

Then in the eighth inning the Mallards scored two runs to bring the deficit to one run. Zach Storbakken (Madison College) had an RBI-groundout to bring home the eighth run.

After the Rafters tacked on an insurance run in the top of the 9th, Cam Cratic came through with his fifth hit of the ballgame in the form of an RBI-single to score Jacob Campbell (Illinois). That was all the Mallards got though as the Rafters Zack Bennett (UCF) closed the door and got the save.

In addition to Cratic’s 5-for-5 night, Michael Fuhrman (UC-San Diego) had two hits out of the leadoff spot for the Mallards. He also laid down a sacrifice bunt in the eighth inning to put two runners in scoring position with one out.

Next up for the Mallards is a road trip to Wausau, Wisconsin to play the Woodchucks. The Ducks record now sits at 7-9 after losing the series to the Rafters, their first series that did not end in a split this season.