TRAVERSE CITY, MI – Both pitchers started off this game lights out. Pat Hohlfeld pitched a scoreless first five innings for Traverse City, and Greyson Fletcher did the same for the Woodchucks.
The Woodchucks finally struck first in the top of the 6th inning. Kyle Simmons led us off with a bunt single, and Brandon Seltzer got a hit into right field to advance Simmons to 3rd. Adam Frank grounded a ball to the Traverse City shortstop that got Seltzer out at second base, but allowed Simmons to score the first run of the ballgame, giving the Chucks a 1-0 lead.
Fletcher continued his dazzling start, going 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 6th after being given his first lead of the ballgame.
Things remained mostly quiet going forward. Greyson Fletcher gave up a leadoff double in the bottom of the 8th inning, but a heads-up play by Kyle Simmons on a ground ball hit to him on the next at-bat allowed him to retire the lead runner. After 8, the Woodchucks were still up 1-0, and Greyson Fletcher still had a shutout.
The Woodchucks had their hearts broken in the bottom of the 9th. Greyson Fletcher got the first two outs, but gave up a walk to Andrew Morrow. The next batter, Jake Wilson singled to advance the pinch-runner Drake Titus to 3rd base. Nolan Soliveres tried to throw out Wilson stealing second to end the game, but the ball went into center field, allowing Titus to score the tying run. The next batter, Kam Smith singled into center field to score Wilson and win the game for the Pit Spitters.
Top Performers
Greyson Fletcher had an amazing start for the Woodchucks, going eight and two-thirds innings for the Woodchucks while allowing just two runs and striking out five.
Brandon Seltzer and T.J. Reeves both went two-for-four.
Next Up
The Wisconsin Woodchucks will stay in Michigan and begin a two-game series against the Kalamazoo Growlers before heading into the All-Star break. For tickets, call us at 715.845.5055, stop by our front office, or visit woodchucks.com.
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The Wisconsin Woodchucks are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 25-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, over 200 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.woodchucks.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Woodchucks as your favorite team.
