Mequon, Wis. – The Rockford Rivets (3-2) use an explosive sixth inning to coast past the Lakeshore Chinooks by a score of 8-1 at Kapco Park in Mequon, Wis. on Saturday night.
After two quick singles in the top of the sixth for the Rivets, Brock Mathis smacked home teammate Braden Mosley to give them the lead followed by the next six Rockford batters pushing in a run and after that.
Rivets manager Brian Smith put the ball in the hands of Rivets’ relievers Nathan Schneiderman and Nolan Gazouski to close the door on any possible Lakeshore comeback attempt. Smith was excited about the hitting that inning and the impact it had for the rest of the game.
“Getting that barrage of hits in a row was huge,” Smith said, “For our confidence, and for shutting down their confidence.”
Lakeshore took the lead in the bottom of the fourth on a solo shot by Jake Thompson over the right field fence. In the next half inning, Mathis got all the way to second on an error by the Chinooks. Two pitches later, he scampered all the way home on a passed ball by the Chinooks’ catcher. With the game tied back up, the Rivets’ were primed for their offensive avalanche in the sixth.
Rivets’ starting pitcher Garrett Goetz threw 4.1 innings, only allowing one run while striking out three batters. Before tonight, Goetz started the last three games at third base and, in that span, hit .333 with 2 runs, and an RBI. Smith spoke about the luxury of having flexible players like Goetz on his roster.
“It’s always nice to have those type of guys on your roster,” Smith said, “Especially early in the season like this, you need guys that can do it both ways, and do it with success. [Goetz] has done it at the plate for us, and he’s proven twice already that he can do it on the mound.”
The Rivets take on the Lakeshore Chinooks (1-4) again tomorrow at Kapco Park. First pitch for that one is schedule to be at 5:05 PM.
Tickets for the Rockford Rivets are available for purchase, including our 5-Game Pack which now costs only $60. Tickets can be purchased by calling the 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. Now in its 25th anniversary season, 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, more than 190 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.rockfordrivets.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rivets as your favorite team.
