WAUSAU WINS ROLLER-COASTER AFFAIR TO SWEEP SEASON SERIES OVER HUSKIES

WAUSAU, WI- Fans at Athletic Park were treated to a frenetic 27-run affair at Athletic Park on Wednesday night, where the Woodchucks survived to take down the Duluth Huskies, 15-12.

Wausau’s bats were hot all night long, with multiple impressive performances. Max Soliz Jr. (Kansas) hit the longest Woodchuck home run in the 2026 season and scored four runs as part of a 2-3 day at the plate. Jackson Petsche (Southeastern CC/LSU-New Orleans) went 3-5 and had four RBIs in the win.

Lane Walton (Arkansas State) also posted a three hit day, with a run, a stolen base and an RBI. Pete Jezerinac (Kennesaw State) would provide a big outing on the mound, earning his third save of the summer with 1.2 scoreless innings of work, with three punchouts.

THE HIGHLIGHTS

Wausau built up a large lead early, and that began with two runs that scored in the first inning on an RBI infield single by Jackson Petsche and a sacrifice fly RBI by Bradon Durfee (Pasco-Hernando State/Kansas). Then, in the second, Wausau added four more, thanks to a Lane Walton sacrifice fly, a Petsche two-RBI double, and an RBI double from Durfee to make it 6-0.

But the momentum in the game turned in a hurry. Duluth scored eight unanswered runs, with seven of them coming in the top of the fourth inning. They took a shock 8-6 lead on a go-ahead grand slam.

However, no one could have expected what was to come in the bottom of the fourth. Wausau made up all the ground and more with eight runs in the frame. Jackson Petsche started the scoring with an RBI single, and Peyton Firgens (McClennan CC/Mississippi State) brought a run in on an error. Then, the offense continued when Holden Groebl (Cowley CC/Kansas) nailed a two-RBI double down the left field line to give Wausau the lead for good.

The Woodchucks weren’t done in the fourth. Noah Malone (Loyola Marymount) put in a trademark swing to pick up a two-RBI single, which made it 12-8. Then, when Max Soliz Jr. came to the plate for the second time in the inning, he hit a rocket over the warehouse in left field, and received a standing ovation for hitting the longest Woodchucks home run of the summer.

Neither team scored again until the seventh, when Wausau added a key insurance run with Noah Malone earning his third RBI on a fielder’s choice groundout. The Huskies put a late scare into the Athletic Park crowd by scoring four runs in the eighth and bringing the tying run to the plate, but Wausau held on thanks to great pitching from its closer, Pete Jezerinac.

NOTES AND NUMBERS

• The game lasted a total of three hours and 46 minutes, the second longest game of the 2026 season, six minutes shorter than Wausau’s 11-10 win in 11 innings at Green Bay in May.
• The fourth inning, where the two teams scored a combined 15 runs, lasted 47 minutes.
• All 18 players for both teams combined that came to the plate reached base, and there were seven different players that registered multi-hit games.
• There were four different half-innings in the game where four or more runs were scored.
• The 12 runs Duluth scored were the most Wausau had surrendered to any team in a win this season.
• The Woodchucks have now won 20 home games this summer, and have won six out of its last seven games.
• Lane Walton has picked up 10 hits in his last five hits, with four of those going for extra bases.

WHAT’S NEXT

Wausau moves to 34-15 on the summer, and with Lakeshore’s loss at Madison, the Woodchucks now have first place in the Great Lakes West second half standings tonight, with a 13-6 record. They hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Chinooks, and it’s their first night in first place in the division since the second-to-last day of the first half. If Wausau wins the second half division title, they’ll qualify for the playoffs for the fourth time in the last five years.

Wausau now gets set for its lone nine-inning doubleheader of the summer, where they face divisional rivals Green Bay in a critical two-game set in the playoff race. The first game tomorrow will begin at 12:05 p.m., and the first game is “Lunch With the Chucks Day”, where fans can enjoy lunch, baseball, and memories, all wrapped into one game.

Then, after the first game is over, the second game will begin at 6:35 p.m., and the “Aspirus Diving Woody Bobblehead Giveaway” is included! The first 500 fans through the gate for game two will receive a Diving Catch Woody Bobblehead, courtesy of Aspirus. Buy now to guarantee your bobblehead for $15! On top of that, it’s Merrill Baseball Association Fundraiser Night! And, last but not least, it’s “Thirsty Thursday,” the entire day at Athletic Park, as fans can enjoy $4 Domestic 16 oz Draft Beer during both games! Fans can purchase tickets to both of tomorrow’s games and the rest of the remaining 2026 Woodchucks home games by going online to woodchucks.com.