LOVES PARK, Ill. – Kalamazoo starter Blaine Fisher (Pittsburg State) tossed a complete game and shortstop Connor Kopach (Southern Illinois) set a league record as the Kalamazoo Growlers defeated the Rockford Rivets 5-1 on Monday night at Rivets Stadium.
Kopach led off the game with a single against Rivets starter Nick Drahozal (Kirkwood CC). He then stole second base by getting around a tag. His forty-sixth steal of the year broke the single-season record for swipes in the Northwoods League. He would then steal third, and eventually score on a Dan Robinson (Central Michigan) fielders’ choice groundout for a 1-0 lead.
In the third, Nick Hutchins (Southern Illinois) walked and Sam Griggs (Southern Indiana) doubled off Drahozal (3-5) to make it 2-0. That was more than enough for Fisher (1-1) who needed only eighty-two pitches to finish what he started.
In the sixth, a Kopach fly ball scored Jay Smith (Kalamazoo Valley CC) and a Hutchins double scored Kevin Phelps (Indiana-South Bend) to extend the lead to 4-1. The Growlers would score an unearned run in the seventh to set the final score.
The Rivets will conclude the home schedule against the Kalamazoo Growlers at Rivets Stadium Wednesday night at 6:35. 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 150 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
