Every Woodchuck Scores At Least Once in 15-5 Win

Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. – The Kenosha Kingfish only scored one run over three games against Wisconsin Rapids over the weekend. After three innings Wednesday afternoon, the Wisconsin Woodchucks scored ten. Every Woodchuck contributed on offense in their highest-scoring game of the year, a 15-5 smackdown of the reigning league champs. After failing to win a single game against Rapids in eight tries in 2016, Wisconsin (22-32; 7-12) can now win the 2017 series against the first-half champion Rafters (38-16; 11-7) with a win in the home half of the doubleheader Wednesday night.

Wisconsin scored early and often against new Rapids starter Grant Gunderson, hitting four consecutive singles in the first before Jackson Owens blew the game open with a 2-RBI triple off the center-field wall. James Davison walked with one out in the second and Tristan Clarke followed by blasting his second homer of the year to make it 6-0. It didn’t stop there. Wisconsin hit four more singles in the third before Hunter Coleman capped off the four-run frame with an RBI double to stake the Chucks to a 10-0 lead.

Rapids pulled one back in the bottom of the third with a Bryson Stott RBI single, but Chucks starter Zach Siggelkow was lights-out otherwise, limiting one of the best overall offenses in the Northwoods League to just one run on four hits over five innings with three strikeouts and two walks.

His offense did more than enough to help him out. Nolan Ryan singled and Davison doubled off Gunderson in the fifth, and they both scored to put Wisconsin up 12-1. Rapids pulled one back on a solo home run by Jake Guenther in the sixth, but the Chucks got right back to it in the seventh. Coleman and Brady Lindsly both walked and scored on a 2-RBI single from Chad Fleischman and Owens walked and scored on a grounder hit by Davison to cap off the Wisconsin scoring.

Guenther walked to lead off the eighth against reliever Drew Spaeth. Charlie McConnell followed with a double and Scott Kapers hit a sac fly, before Will Davis reached on an error to bring home two more unearned runs to get Rapids within 10. Kevin Bolder came in to pitch the ninth and allowed a single, but Yeager Taylor turned a sweet unassisted double play at first on a blast of a liner hit by Guenther to seal the 15-5 Wisconsin win.

Every Woodchuck tallied at least one hit and scored at least one run in the highest-scoring Wisconsin game of the year. Six Chucks tallied at least two hits, led by three from both Clarke and Stevie Mangrum; five Chucks scored at least twice, led by three from Clarke; all but one Woodchuck drove in at least a run, and five Chucks had two RBI to lead the Chucks to their fourth win over the reigning league champions this summer.  

Doubleheader day continues Wednesday night in Wausau. Daniel Sprinkle will start his first game of the summer for the Chucks against the Rafters’ Tevita Gerber, with first pitch at 6:35 PM.

Tickets are on sale to all Wisconsin Woodchucks home games and can be purchased online by calling 715.845.5055 or by stopping by the Woodchucks front office during normal business hours.

Tim Hackett, Broadcasting Intern