Wisconsin Rapids take down Lakeshore in a long game from Kapco Park

Wisconsin Rapids, WI— A come from behind victory in the bottom of the 9th for the Rafters as they take down the Lakeshore Chinooks in a close knit contest.

The Rafters drew first blood in the top of the 1st as Ty Johnson and Brendan Bobo were both hit by a pitch. Garrett Broussard walked which allowed Gurevitch to send a sac fly to deep right field to send Johnson home. This game was scoreless for 3 innings and then Lakeshore broke through in the bottom of the 5th. The Chinook infielders, Johannes and Becker both walked while Roessler got a base hit. The left fielder, Hunter Grimes, drilled a ball into left field to send 2 runs home to give Lakeshore a 2-1 lead. 

Calen Graham started on the mound with 2 strikeouts and Mikiah Negrete took over in the 4th inning while pitching 2 more strikeouts. 

Lakeshore added to their lead in the bottom of the 7th as Brady Counsell got a base hit into center field. Shortly after, Counsell got to 3rd with Gabe Roessler up. He hit a sac fly to center field to bring Counsell home and the Chinooks took a 3-1 lead. The top of the 7th came around and the Rafters got one back. Bobo and Hugo walked while Conniff was up. Chris saw a wild pitch that rolled into the back track to give Bobo the green light to score. The Rats cut it to a 3-2 game. 

Wisconsin Rapids stepped up their game in the top of the 9th as Gurevitch led off and was hit by a pitch. Hanson pinch ran and Hugo hit a perfectly executed bunt into right field to send him to first while advancing Hanson to second. Chris Conniff then hit a huge line drive on the 1st base line to bring Hanson home. Later in the inning, Johnson hit a sac fly into deep center field to allow Hugo to get home and the Rafters took the lead. The Rafters pitching staff called to their bullpen once again to bring in the Westcliff pitcher, Julian Tristan, he retired 5 batters and recorded his 7th save of the season while doing so. 

A big win for Wisconsin Rapids as they end their 3 game losing streak and get their first win of the second half. They improve to 1-2 and will take on the final game of the series tomorrow vs the Lakeshore Chinooks. First pitch is at 6:35.

For 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. Now in its’ 30^th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 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 325 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 (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit 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.