Offense Erupts, MacCallum Impresses in Win
ROCKFORD, IL – The Wisconsin Woodchucks (23-17) scored nine runs on 14 hits in a victory over the Rockford Rivets (18-23) Sunday afternoon.
The 9-6 win improved the Woodchucks’ second-half record to 2-3 and split the two-game series at Rivets Stadium.
Dylan MacCallum earned the win in his first start of the season. Over five scoreless innings, the Pepperdine righty allowed only two hits and struck out three.
His run support arrived in the top of the fourth. Ben McCabe’s two-run moonshot to left field broke a scoreless tie and ignited a string of six unanswered runs during the middle innings.
Later in the fourth, Bash Randle’s well-placed bunt resulted in a Rockford error which allowed Tommy Delgado to score. Randle scored later in the inning on a groundout by Jordan Schaffer.
In the top of the sixth, Stephen Reid continued his hot start to the second half with an RBI single which scored Schaffer. Gino Groover drove in Reid to put the Woodchucks in front, 6-0.
Relievers Collin Millar and Mike Schicker combined to pitch a scoreless bottom of the sixth.
Schicker allowed one run to score in the seventh before Peyton Schofield stranded a pair of inherited runners.
Jacob Burke’s RBI single re-upped the Woodchucks’ lead in the top of the eighth. After Delgado’s two-run double, the lead swelled to 9-1.
Those insurance runs proved a bit more important than the Woodchucks would have liked. The Rivets scored two in the eighth and three in the ninth.
The tying run never got to the plate, as Geo Camfield struck out the only batter he faced in a one-out save.
Top Performers
McCabe drove in his second and third runs of the season with his two-run homer. As a team, the Woodchucks hit three home runs on their five-game road trip.
Reid went 3-for-5 with two runs and one RBI. The Georgia Tech outfielder is hitting .529 with five RBIs in his first five games.
Schaffer was also 3-for-5 with a walk in the win, scoring two runs for a third consecutive game.
Kevin Kilpatrick extended his hitting streak to 16 consecutive games. He was 2-for-6 Sunday.
Delgado was 1-for-4 with a run scored and two RBIs. The double was his fourth of the season.
MacCallum lowered his season ERA to 2.31 in the win. The five-inning outing was his longest of the season thus far.
Millar struck out two in his second consecutive scoreless outing.
Dane Miller retired the only batter he faced, ending the eighth inning with a flyout.
Camfield earned his first save of the season, recording his tenth strikeout in 13-plus innings.
The Wisconsin Woodchucks are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 27-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.
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Author: David Keech
David Keech is a retired teacher and works as a sportswriter, sports official and as an educational consultant. He has reported on amateur sports since 2011, known as 'KeechDaVoice.' David can be reached at [email protected]
