Mallards Trounced by Rafters to Open Home-and-Home
Madison’s defense struggles in loss to Wisconsin Rapids
Madison, WI – The Mallards followed up their impressive win on Wednesday night with a 12-6 loss to the Great Lakes West’s 1st Half Champion Wisconsin Rapids on Thursday.
The Rafters offense is known for scoring early, and scoring often. They entered with a team batting average of .280 against Madison, the highest of any divisional opponent. The scoring was underway in the top of the 2nd off the bat of designated hitter Andrew Semo as he put a ball into the backyard in left field to scratch first. The Rafters went on to add two more runs in the inning on a McKinley Erves single, scoring two more, to take a 3-0 edge against the Mallards starter Reed Butz. After another run in the top of the 3rd inning, Madison got on the board for the first time via a wild pitch from Rafters’ starter Brandon Scott scoring Colin Hageman (0-2, 2 BB, HBP, 2 R).
The Mallards saw what happened in their favor in the 8th inning last night in the victory over Lakeshore turn against them in the top of the 4th. Against three different pitchers, Wisconsin Rapids scored six runs on just two hits. Two errors, both on Hageman at shortstop, and six walks helped the Rafters build their lead to make it 10-1. The biggest swing in the inning was from Jacob Igawa as he was able to clear the bases with a two-out double.
The Ducks didn’t go away. They scored three runs in the bottom of the 5th to bring the game within six runs on a one-run single from Chad McCann (2-5) and two-run single from Liam Moreno (2-5, 3 RBI, ROE). A Cael Chatham home run in the top of the 6th off Mallards’ reliever Gauge Lockhart all but sealed the deal. Madison scored two runs in the bottom of the 9th.
A one-day road trip to Witter Field in Wisconsin Rapids is next for Madison as the season continues to wind down. The Rafters are one game away from tying the Northwoods League record for wins in a single season (52). Game action tomorrow can be found on Mixlr (MadisonMallards) at 6:35 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 Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 29th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, 300 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.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.
