WAUSAU, WI. – The Wisconsin Woodchucks used late inning heroics for the second consecutive game on Sunday to come back from both an early deficit and a 93 minute rain delay in the fourth inning, to beat the Rockford Rivets 4-2 on Sunday afternoon at Athletic Park.
Wisconsin LHP Jesse Philp (1-1) collected the win, while Jack Granath (0-1) suffered the loss in his Rivets debut, despite pitching six strong innings. Gordon Cardenas picked up the save (1), escaping a jam in the ninth by striking out Rockford DH Jordan Hovey.
The Rivets struck immediately in the first with Jacob Vander Wal singling, stealing second base, and scoring on a Josh Hauser RBI single. The Woodchucks answered in the second, scoring the game tying run on a passed ball charged to Braden Williams. That score stood until the fourth, when mother nature stopped the game for 1 hour and 33 minutes as a sudden strong shower with heavy wind gusts hit the area. Immediately after the restart, Cory Wright would score the go-ahead run on an error by Wisconsin 2B Cole Daily. The lead would last until the fifth, when Woodchuck CF Mac Caples hit his first home run of the season to left center off Granath. The Woodchucks would take the lead in the sixth on a two-run single by RF Josh Gouley, and Wisconsin would escape a two-out, two on jam in the ninth, stranding the tying run at second base.
The Rivets will begin a short two game series with the Lakeshore Chinooks for office night Monday night at 6:35 at Rivets Stadium. Broadcasts and live streams can be found at NorthwoodsLeague.com.
Rockford is a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League, which will play its 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball in 2016. The Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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 140 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (Washington Nationals) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (Chicago White Sox), Jordan Zimmermann (Detroit Tigers), Curtis Granderson (New York Mets), Lucas Duda (Mets) and Ben Zobrist (Chicago Cubs). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League Website, NorthwoodsLeague.com. For more information, visit RockfordRivets.com.
