A rough 9th inning and the Rafters fall late

Wisconsin Rapids, WI— The Rafters were unable to sweep the Chinooks as they fall to Lakeshore by a score of 9-7. They out hit Lakeshore 13-11, but had a rough 9th inning.

The Rafters were able to get off to the races in the bottom of the 1st as Brendan Bobo grounded a ball to the 1st basemen which allowed Sailors to score. Jack Gurevitch continued where he left off yesterday and smashed a ball into left field to allow Basseer to score and the Rafters went up 2-0. The Rafters did not stop there as Coastal Carolina product, Anthony Galason, pulled a ball into right field which sent Bobo home. The Rafters took a 3-0 lead. Unfortunately, Lakeshore followed it up off of a Jason Schaaf sac fly rbi to bring in Counsell.

Lakeshore cut into the lead in the lead in the 4th with another run off of a sac fly rbi to allow Counsell to score. That was the second time he crossed home plate. The Rafters struck right back in the 4th inning as Creighton product, Hogan Helligso, smashed a ball into center field. Shortly after Nolan Sailors grounded a ball into first and Helligso slid into home from 3rd. The Rafters added to their lead in the 6th inning as Gurevitch grounded a ball into second base which had the San Diego native, James Castagnola, get home and the Rafters were up 5-2. The Chinooks came storming back with 2 runs in the 7th inning. Avery Owusu- Asiedu belted a ball into left field that sent Townsend home. The chinooks got one more run in the inning as Owusu- Asiedu got home on a wild pitch and the score was within one. 

Unfortunately the game took a major turning point in the top of the 9th. The Chinooks had their biggest inning yet. They had the bats on fire by driving in run after run after run. They acquired 4 hits and 5 runs off of RBI’s to left field and center field. The Rafters had a real tough time slowing them down and the score went from leading 5-4 entering the 9th to trailing 9-5 in the end of the half inning.

The Rafters made one final push in the bottom of the 9th and it started off with Galason driving a ball into center. Broussard was then hit by a pitch and Helligso hit a single to center field. The Rafters had the bases loaded with nobody out. Nolan Sailors then grounded out to 1st, but Galason scored. Shortly after, Jack Basseer continued his red hot day by singling into left field to bring Broussard home. Unfortunately Brendan Bobo popped out at the end and the Rafters could not complete the comeback.  

Wisconsin Rapids will have to pack their bags and hit the road because 9 of their 10 next games are away. It starts tomorrow in Wausau as they take on the Woodchucks from Athletic Park. First pitch is scheduled at 6:05. 

Want to attend a Rafters game this season? Rafters 9-Game Ticket Packages are on sale now! For more information on all Rafters ticket offerings visit Raftersbaseball.com, call the Rafthouse at 715-424-5400, or come visit us over at historic Witter Field. The Box Office is open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday at Witter Field, 521 Lincoln Street in Wisconsin Rapids.

The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Having completed its’ 30th season, the Northwoods 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 245 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB All-Star Jordan Zimmermann (DET). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.raftersbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rafters as your favorite team.