June 2009
Holcomb Goes The Distance To Beat ‘Chucks
The Battle Creek Bombers used a complete game gem from Dan Holcomb (Evansville) as they defeated the Wisconsin Woodchucks by a final score of 5-1. Holcomb went the distance for the Bombers, allowing just one run and six hits while striking out five and walking just one. At one point he retired 9 straight batters. A solo home run in the 9th inning was the lone blemish for Holcomb.
O’Grady Extends Scoreless Innings Streak to 17
Dennis O'Grady (Duke) continued his dominance on the mound as he threw eight strong innings, allowed just three hits, walked only one, and struck out nine in the Lunkers victory over the Thunder Bay Border Cats, 5-0. He lowered his ERA to a league starting pitcher-best 0.29, picked up his second win in a Lunkers uniform, and didn't face more than four Thunder Bay hitters in any inning. O'Grady has now thrown 17 consecutive scoreless innings dating back to his start on June 16 against Duluth.
Griffin Continues Dominance For MoonDogs
Tim Griffin (Rollins) hurled yet another masterpiece as the righthander held St. Cloud to no runs on just three hits over seven innings, to give the MoonDogs a season-high fifth straight victory. Griffin moved to 2-1 on the season and combined with Chris Garrison (Oregon) to hurl the fifth MoonDogs shutout of the year. Griffin's ERA now stands at a paltry 1.10, with 39 strikeouts in 32.2 innings.
Fyffe Goes The Distance To Blank Huskies
Matt Fyffe (Eastern Kentucky) was sensational on the hill for the Alexandria Beetles, blanking the Duluth Huskies 3-0 at Wade Stadium. Fyffe (1-1) surrendered six hits in the complete game shutout, walking two while striking out a season high five. Fyffe didn’t allow a runner past second base all night.
Varce Strikes out Nine in Bullfrogs 2-0 Win
It was Green Bay starter Zach Varce who won the pitcher’s duel on Sunday afternoon, as the Bullfrogs dropped the Waterloo Bucks in a 2-0 win. Varce (Portland) fanned nine Bucks’ batters and surrendered three hits over seven innings on the hill to earn his first win of the season. Varce pushed his league leading strikeout total to 49, which are 17 more than Tim Griffin (Rollins) of Mankato.
Ringenberg Steps Up For Eau Claire
Jon Ringenberg (Baylor), the every day first baseman for the Express, but made his second start on the mound Saturday night in the biggest game of the season so far. Ringenberg was fantastic in earning his first victory of the season as the Express took hold of first place with a 2-1 victory over Madison. Ringenberg gave up a run in the first inning, but did not look back after that. He pitched eight innings, allowing one run, four hits and struck out six Mallards. Honorable Mention: Mankato's John Brebbia (Elon) earned his first save of season by pitching 2.2 innings of near-perfect baseball. Brebbia entered the game in the seventh with the tying and go-ahead runs on third and second. He responded by striking out the next two Duluth hitters as he finished with five strikeouts while allowing just one hit in helping the MoonDogs expand their lead in the North Division.
Morgan K’s 10 Woodchucks
Matt Morgan (Purdue) impressed all 5,474 in attendance at the "Duck Pond" on Friday night by striking out a season-high 10 batters over six innings of work and propelling the Mallards to a 4-1 win over South Division rival, Wisconsin. Morgan (2-0) endured a one hour rain delay prior to the start of the game, but was unfazed. Morgan struck out the side in the top half of the first and third innings. A solo homerun was the only blemish for Morgan on the night.
Self Impressive In Madison Debut
Derek Self, welcome to Madison. Two days after arriving to the Capital City, the soon-to-be sophomore Louisville pitcher didn’t disappoint in his first start, shutting down the Wisconsin Woodchucks to give the Mallards a 4-1 victory Thursday night in Wausau. Self (1-0) only allowed three hits during his six innings of work while striking out three batters and walking just one. He was in control of the game from the very first pitch and didn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning.
Frymier Tosses 10th No-No In NWL History
On a night that included four shutouts St. Cloud's Kurtis Frymier one-upped the other stellar pitching performances by tossing the 10th no-hitter in NWL history. The third-year River Bat from Michigan State pitched the second no-no in River Bats history - in a 2-0, 7-inning win in Game 1 of a doubleheader against the La Crosse Loggers at Joe Faber Field. Frymier joined Wisconsin's Bobby Pritchett as the only Northwoods Leaguers to throw a no-hitter this season. Frymier also joined Thomas Diamond as the only River Bats to accomplish the feat. Frymier (1-1) escaped trouble in the first inning when two Loggers reached base on errors. He allowed the first of his two walks to start the second inning, but induced a double-play ball in the next at-bat. That began a string of 14 consecutive batters retired by Frymier.
O’Grady Tosses One-Hitter In Duluth
Dennis O'Grady (Duke) threw a complete game one-hitter, struck out nine, and walked only one to lead the Lunkers to a 1-0 victory over the Duluth Huskies at Wade Stadium. O'Grady is the first player to be named both Pitcher and Player of the Night as he was previously named the NWL Player of the Night on June 12. O'Grady's curveball and fastball were spot-on all night, and the lone hit he allowed came in the second inning. He retired the Huskies in the fifth by striking out all three guys he faced, and in eight of his nine innings pitched, he only faced three Duluth hitters.
Handley Handles MoonDogs
Mitch Handley (North Alabama) went seven strong innings as the Alexandria Beetles defeated the first place Mankato MoonDogs 2-1. Handley allowed just five hits and one run. He walked one and struck out two in earning his second Pitcher of the Night award this season and the third by a North Alabama pitcher (Chase Porch, ALX). Handley sat down the first eight batters of the game to get the Beetles off to a good start.
Bear Lifts ‘Cats With Complete Game Effort
Colin Bear (Northwestern State) gave the Thunder Bay Border Cats a much needed solid outing on the mound firing a complete game five hitter. The Border Cats snapped a seven game losing streak Sunday night in beating Brainerd 4-1 at Port Arthur Stadium. The lefthander allowed only one run in the seventh inning. Bear walked three and struck out seven as he evened his record at 1-1.