Bangert the Hero as Kingfish Sink Woodchucks

Kenosha, Wis.- The Kenosha Kingfish tied season-highs with 10 runs on 14 hits in last night’s win, and it looked like they might be on their way to another lopsided decision after the first inning Saturday. But instead of a rout, it took a pair of late hits to lift the Kingfish (17-9) to a 4-3 win over the Wisconsin Woodchucks (9-16).

DJ Morland made his fifth start of the year for the Woodchucks. It didn’t start off very well, but it turned out to be his best yet. Morland walked the first man he faced and allowed the next two to single to load the bases with no outs in the first. Up stepped Derek Bangert, who delivered a two-run single to left to open the scoring. Max Widmar drove in another run on a sacrifice fly to stake Kenosha to an early 3-0 lead.

From there, Morland was lights-out, allowing just two hits and no runs over the next five innings, at one point retiring nine Kingfish in a row on the way to completing his first quality start of the season with three runs allowed over six innings. Unfortunately for him and the Woodchucks, Kenosha starter Quinn Snarskis was even better through his first six. He worked around a handful of singles and kept the Woodchucks at bay for quite a while.

But the visitors finally broke through against one of the league’s best starters in the seventh. Ivan Nunez led off with a single and Yeager Taylor followed with the third Woodchucks triple in as many nights to get the Chucks on the board and snap a streak of eighteen shutout innings by Snarskis. Brady Lindsly drove home Taylor with a sac fly to pull Wisconsin within one, but they would not get closer.

Until the next inning. Cole Erickson worked around a single in the seventh in relief of Snarskis, but he gave up the lead in the eighth when a usual suspect stepped up to the plate. Stevie Mangrum came up with his team down by one and launched his tenth home run of the year to left-center to tie the ballgame.

The Chucks looked like they might be able to capitalize on the momentum, but the Kingfish pulled the wind out of their sails in short order. In the bottom of the eighth, Jack Yalowitz launched a ball over Lindsly’s head in left for a one-out triple, and Derek Bangert was the hero with an RBI single to put Kenosha ahead. It was the first run reliever Daniel Sprinkle had allowed since June 11, and it gave the Kingfish a 4-3 lead. Closer Billy McKay came in and tossed a perfect ninth to tally his third save of the season and ice the Kenosha win.

The Woodchucks will look to rebound from this series loss when they conclude this three-game road trip Sunday afternoon in Madison. Josh Bottenfield will make his first start of the year at 1:05 PM.

Tickets are on sale to all Wisconsin Woodchucks home games and the 2017 Northwoods League Home Run Derby and All-Star Game, presented by Ascension. Tickets can be purchased online, by calling 715.845.5055 or by stopping by the Woodchucks front office during normal business hours.