Clay Moffitt throws a pitch for Rockford on Monday night. The Rivets fell to the Kingfish despite leading 1-0 going into the sixth inning. Photo courtesy of Doug Timmermann and JK Richards Photography.
LOVES PARK, Ill. – After winning six of their last seven games, the Rivets’ bats finally cooled down on Monday night.
Clay Moffitt (Louisiana State-Eunice) got the start for Rockford and pitched five scoreless innings in a no decision. Kenosha’s Quinn Snarskis (St. Joseph’s College) gave up one run over six innings to lead Kenosha (9-5) to a 4-2 victory over Rockford (8-6).
Both teams stranded runners on base in the first few innings of the game, but the Rivets scored first. Zach Rheams (Texas Tech) drove in Ryan Hutchinson (Illinois State) with an RBI fielder’s choice to take a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 3rd inning.
The Rivets held their lead until the 6th. Derek Bangert (Bradley University) doubled to start the frame and Max Widmar (Wisconsin-Parkside) drove him in with a sacrifice fly to tie the game 1-1.
More damage for Rockford came in the seventh inning. Mike Madej (Purdue) scored off a wild pitch thrown by Rockford’s Brad Littleton (Indiana), and the Kingfish added two more runs off an RBI double by Connor Doyle (University of San Diego) and a Rockford throwing error.
Trailing 4-1 in the bottom of the 7th, Brian Klein (Texas Tech) scored for Rockford off a Kenosha passed ball. Despite having two more runners in scoring position, the Rivets were unable to score for the rest of the inning. The Rivets stranded two more runners in the 8th and failed to reach base in the 9th to seal their fate.
Littleton (0-1) took the loss for the Rivets, who lost for just the second time in their last eight tries.
The Rivets continue their six-game home stand on Tuesday for a rematch with the Mallards from Madison for two games. It’s an early one! Gates open at 10:00 a.m. for the 11:00 a.m. first pitch. Tuesday is Kids’ Day, where Rivets posters will be handed out at the end of the game! Wednesday is Weiner Wednesday – hot dogs are just $1! You won’t want to miss that. And don’t forget to order your Rivets tickets today by calling the Rockford Rivets ticket office at 815.240.4159.
The Rockford Rivets are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League, which will play its 24th season of summer collegiate baseball in 2017. The Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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, 170 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (Washington Nationals), two-time World Champion Ben Zobrist (Chicago Cubs) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (Boston Red Sox), Jordan Zimmermann (Detroit Tigers), Curtis Granderson (New York Mets) and Lucas Duda (Mets). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League Website, NorthwoodsLeague.com.
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