LOVES PARK, Ill. – The Rockford Rivets (17-14) were down 2-0 entering the bottom of the seventh inning, but rallied for three runs in the inning to take the lead and win the game, 3-2, over the Lakeshore Chinooks (16-16) at Rivets Stadium Saturday night.
It was the Rivets first meeting of the season with the Chinooks, and Game 1 of a home-and-home series. Brandon Novak (Oakton) started for the Rivets and allowed a first-inning run, but settled down after that. Novak left the game with two outs in the fifth inning; Josh Petersen (Ohio) got the final out of the fifth. Cyrillo Watson (Illinois) started for Lakeshore and threw six shutout innings, allowing just two hits.
The Chinooks added an insurance run in the sixth on a two-out solo home run to left field from Connor Kimple (Oklahoma State). The Chinooks stayed up 2-0 until the bottom of the seventh inning, when the Rivets’ bats came alive.
JC DeMuri (Quincy) was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and scored the first run on a passed ball. Then with two outs, Trevor Paradoski’s (Texas Tech) infield single scored Brian Klein (Texas Tech), who doubled in the inning, to tie the game. Eric Cole (Arkansas) followed with a go-ahead RBI double that got all the way into the left field corner, scoring Paradoski from first base, and the Rivets took a 3-2 lead.
That’s all the Rivets would need. Nick Drahozal (Nebraska-Omaha) pitched a scoreless eighth inning and Lukas Veinbergs (San Jacinto) pitched a scoreless ninth to earn the save. Petersen, who worked two and one third innings in relief, got his first win of the season. Alec Marsh (Arizona State), who allowed all three Rivets runs, took the loss, while Watson took a tough-luck no decision.
Game 2 of this series will be played at 6:35 p.m. Sunday night in Lakeshore.
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, 160 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.