Rafters Collect Win In Wausau To Split Home-And-Home With Woodchucks 

Rafters Collect Win In Wausau To Split Home-And-Home With Woodchucks

 

WAUSAU, WI. – The Rafters snagged their second win of the season against the Wausau Woodchucks at Athletic Park on Friday night.

Wisconsin Rapids got on the board first in the second inning with a sacrifice fly off the bat of Walker Buchanan, scoring Aidan Teel who had doubled with one out. The Woodchucks knotted the game up in the home half of the inning. Max Soliz Jr reached on an error from third baseman Greyson Shafer and scored on a fielder’s choice that Christian Smith-Johnson reached on.

 

Teel broke the tie in the fourth on an RBI single with two outs, which marked yet another multi-hit game for the Mahwah, NJ native.

 

Mason Onate announced his presence in the contest with authority to lead off the sixth inning. The infielder launched his second home run of the season over the right-field wall to extend the Rafters’ lead to 3-1.

 

Tracer Lopez came through for Rapids an inning later. The Texas Tech shortstop lined a two-out single into right field and plated two runs. Lopez’s two-out single in the seventh inning plated two runs, set up by a base hit from Cashel Dugger and a double by Kyler McIntosh.

 

Wausau made it a three-run game in the bottom half of the seventh, as an infield single from Edian Espinal made it 5-2.

 

Dugger collected his second hit of the game for Wisconsin Rapids with an RBI double in the eighth inning, which led to the game’s final score of 6-2.

 

Houston High got the start and victory for the Rafters in this one. The right-hander held Wausau hitless through 5.2 innings and only allowed one knock in his six frames of work. High allowed an unearned run and walked three. The Tennessee Tech commit did not collect a punchout on 78 pitches, as he fed his infield groundballs all night long.

 

Sebastian Escobar opposed High on the hill for the Woodchucks. The right-hander went 6.2 innings against the Rafter offense on his home mound. Escbobar collected the loss and allowed four runs on five hits.

 

Michael Pirrello slammed the door shut out of the Rafter stable. The UC Irvine product collected the final six outs and allowed just one hit. Nothing came across on Pirrello and he struck out three Woodchuck hitters on 26 pitches.

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 26 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

Athlete of the Week and Team of the Week:

Nominate an athlete or team: HERE

**********************************************

Pancakes or Waffles!  We feature top area athletes with our world-renowned feature. Send us your nominations for who you’d like us to interview HERE

College Athlete Roundup! We want to recognize student-athletes from the area who are competing at the college level. Send us information on college athletes from the area with our simple form HERE

Where are they Now? We feature athletes and difference makers from the past, standouts in sports who excelled over the years and have moved on. Know of a former athlete, coach, or difference maker who we should feature? Know of a former standout competitor whose journey beyond central Wisconsin sports is one we should share? Send us information on athletes and difference makers of the past with our simple form HERE

Baked or Fried! We also feature difference makers throughout central Wisconsin: coaches, booster club leaders, administration, volunteers, you name it. Send us your nominations for who you’d like us to interview HERE