Wausau loses game two of four to Grand Forks 4-2

The Ignite couldn’t find any momentum on offence in a dominant pitching performance by the Grand Forks Spitfires. The only two runs on the day came in the final inning and was too little too late. 

How It Happened

With one out, Marley Teasley found a single to get on base but would be out after a Claire Calmes fielder’s choice. Mia Johnson advanced Calmes to second with a single to the infield. The shortstop would lose her footing, and all runners were safe. The two were stranded with the final out on the next at bat. A 1-2-3 inning by Addy Kluck and the Ignite defence saw the Spitfires’ top of the order taken down, keeping the game scoreless. 

Brooke Steinhorst reached on a two-out walk after back-to-back strikeouts by the Ignite. The Ignites were retired and remained scoreless. A no-doubt home run started the scoring for the Spitfires. Addy Kluck limited the damage with two strikeouts to end the second inning, Ignite down 1-0. 

The Ignite was followed by going three up and three down to start the third inning. Back-to-back strikeouts preceded Addy Kluck as she closed the third inning. 

Leading off the fourth inning, a single from Mia Johnson saw an extra base after an error on the throw to first. Riley Schwisow drew a walk to put two runners on with one out. Mia Buske grounded into a fielder’s choice, which left runners on the corners and would be stranded the following at bat. A two-run homer and an RBI double extended the Spitfires’ lead to 4-0. Maya Rudy earned a strikeout and made her first appearance since Friday, June 26th, in relief. 

Taylor Liebelt led off the fifth with a double for her first hit of the night and reached third with a Quinn Marnocha ground out. Tiebelt was tagged out at home after a Marley Teasley single, leaving the Ignite scoreless. The defence did their job despite more hits from the Spitfires, keeping extra runs off the board.

Down 4-0 at the top of the sixth, Mia Johnson walked, but a double play was turned, and the ignit found themselves back to square one, leaving the inning scoreless. The Defence once again does great behind the pitching of Maya Rudy to keep the score at 4-0.

Mia Buske drew a lead-off walk to start the seventh. Two missplays in the infield saw Brooke Steinhorst safe at first and, with the ball being thrown out of play, saw Buske reach third. The first Ignite run came across with a fielder’s choice for Taylor Liebelt that advanced Brooke Steinhorst to third. Stienhorst threw on the subsequent ground out by Quinn Marnocha to bring the game within two runs with two outs. A flyout ended the game with a 4-2 loss to the Spitfires.

Stats and Facts

• Mia Johnson extended her active hitting streak to 5 games with her two hits. 
• Claire Calmes extended her hitting streak to 6 games with a hit in the game. 
• The Ignite now sit in third place in the softball standings following the loss, despite both Wausau and Grand Forks sharing the same 9-10 record. 

Coming Up Next

The Ignite play game three of four against the Spitfires on July 4th, with first pitch set for 6:05 pm on Flo Sports.

You can stay up to date with the Ignite by visiting ignitesoftball.com and catching all games live on Flo Sports or select games on All Women’s Sports Network.

 

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Leveraging the 31-year success of the Northwoods League, the first for-profit Summer Collegiate Baseball League, Northwoods League Softball (NWLS) is the first for-profit Women’s Summer Collegiate Softball League beginning play in the Upper Midwest in the summer of 2024. The purpose of the League will be to develop players for their college, Olympic and future professional play. Teams will be promoted similar to minor league baseball teams, playing games in front of fans in a fun, friendly, family-oriented environment.