Madison erases four-run deficit in 9th to walk-off Lakeshore for second time

Madison, WI – Following the postponement of the first game of the double-header on Wednesday due to a consistent downpour, the Mallards eliminated a four-run deficit in the 9th inning to walk-off Lakeshore for the second time in 2023.

The Chinooks were all over Mallards’ starter Jon McCullough in the 1st inning. Lakeshore recorded four hits after the first pitch of the game resulted in a hit batsman. Trey Becker cleaned the basepaths with his first home run of the year to give Lakeshore an early 5-0 edge.

Matthew Mueller tossed a gem against a lagging Madison offense. For the third straight day, the Mallards didn’t score in the first five innings. Mueller matched a season-high with seven strikeouts while not surrendering a hit to Mallards’ bats. It took until the bottom of the 7th for Madison to get on the board when a Jake Goolsby double scored Cal Fisher.

Madison’s bullpen was nearly perfect backing McCullough’s second start of the summer. Nick Argento, Andrew Guardino, and Rashad Ruff tossed scoreless relief to help their starter.

After a day full of rain, lightning struck the Mallards’ offense in the bottom of the 9th against Parker Johnson. A single, a walk, and a hit-by-pitch began the inning which chased Johnson, bringing on closer Ben Whiteside with nobody out. With the bases loaded, David Melfi hit his double of the year to cut the lead in half. Mike Gupton flew a sacrifice fly into center to bring the lead to one with Melfi on second. After a wild pitch moved Melfi to third, Jackson Tucker grounded to second where Jack Counsell threw the ball away which plated the tying run. After two more walks to juice the bases, Owen Jackson skied a fly ball to center to win the game, scoring Tucker.

Following the exciting finish, the Mallards hit the road for a two-game trip to Green Bay at Capital Credit Union Park for the first time this year. First pitch on Thursday night is scheduled for 6:35 P.M. CST.