April 12, 2017 at 2:13 p.m.
Baseball: Offense propels Hodags past Medford 9-4
Baseball: Offense propels Hodags past Medford 9-4
The Hodags pounded out 13 hits and used an error-aided five-run second to get by Medford 9-4 in Medford.
Jacob DeMeyer hit his first home run of the season; Easton Senoraske, Brad Comer, Brad Quade and Alec Modrow each had two-hit nights at the plate and the Hodags combined for four extra base hits in the contest.
"I thought the name of the game tonight was just the strike zones," Hodag coach Joe Waksmonski said. "For both sides it was tight. We talked a lot beforehand about being patient. Our guys were patient and, once they got the pitch they could hit, they did a nice job driving the ball. I believe four extra base hits tonight. Our guys had a great approach at the plate."
That tight strike zone hindered Hodag starter Jacob DeMeyer, who was chased off in the fourth inning after reaching the daily 100-pitch limit. He only allowed one hit in 3 1/3 innings, but walked six and struck out six.
"With J.D. it was tough but when we know what the zone is, if it's small zone, we've got to find a way to stay in that zone," Waksmonski said. "He kind of struggled a little bit tonight with his command but, again, he battled through some really long innings, got a couple defensive plays behind him and was able to maintain only two runs when he left."
Rhinelander did its damage in the second with a pair of two-out, two-run doubles by Senoraske and Comer sandwiched between an error that kept the inning alive. Comer later scored on an error. DeMeyer added a solo home run with two out in the fourth. Three batters later Quade singled home Comer, but Tyler Blomdahl was thrown out at the plate trying to score on the play, one of three outs the Hodags made at home in the contest.
Medford was within 7-4 in the seventh, and it looked as though it was going to stay that way after the Hodags ran into their second out of the inning on a botched suicide squeeze play, but Modrow singled home Tait Spencer and Liam Stevens followed with a double to left center that plated Modrow.
"That was huge and that was all with two outs, too. We had the squeeze attempt that didn't work out," Waksmonski said. "The catcher (Conrad Bolz) made a nice play blocking the ball and stopping that squeeze from happening. Modrow had a great at bat, a two-strike base knock to score Tait. Then Liam, the freshman, the first pitch he saw he was able to lace it into the gap. Those were two great, big at bats for us."
The Raiders scored a run off DeMeyer in both the first and the second. The Rhinelander ace left the game in the fourth after a nine-pitch at-bat that led to a walk to Ben Lindgren, which pushed DeMeyer to 105 pitches for the game. Under new WIAA regulations, pitchers are allowed to finish the plate appearance in which he reaches the 100-pitch threshold.
Senoraske came on in relief and the Raiders got two runs on a hit and an error later in the inning. After getting Jack Shafer to strike out looking to end the fourth, Senoraske (2-0) settled in, retiring 10 of the final 12 batters he faced to pick up the win.
"Easton, he came in and it took a little bit to get going as well. But once he got going, those last two innings he was rolling, throwing strikes and mixing speeds. It was good to see," Waksmonski said.
DeMeyer and Senoraske combined to strike out 11 Medford batters, while holding the Raiders to only three hits in the game. Lefty Taylor Shaw took the loss for Medford, allowing seven runs on nine hits over five innings.
Tuesday's game was originally scheduled to be played in Rhinelander, but with 5-to-6 inches of snow covering Stafford Field Monday night, a decision was made late Tuesday morning to move the game to Medford, which was mostly spared by Monday's late-season snowfall. Medford will now travel to Rhinelander May 4 for the teams' second GNC meeting of the season.
For the Hodags, getting the game as scheduled in had a clear benefit. With the Rhinelander's next game not scheduled until April 18 at Mosinee, playing Tuesday avoided putting extra pressure on the Hodags' pitching staff later in the season.
"It was important," Waksmosnski said. "As much as playing tonight wasn't maybe in our best interest from a standpoint of the weather, from the standpoint of our day getting messed up, our routine getting messed up a little bit but, in that aspect, it was nice to get the game in."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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