April 25, 2018 at 1:42 p.m.
Double down in the Dells
Hodag baseball knocks off Peshtigo, Crivitz to open season
Double down in the Dells
Rhinelander overcame a last-inning surge to hold off Peshtigo 5-4 in the opening game and then got a dominant performance from senior Brad Comer, both on the hill and at the plate, as it defeated Crivitz in the nightcap, 8-2.
Perhaps the biggest win for the Hodags, though, was simply getting outside on an actual diamond for the first time all season.
"You're getting feedback now playing a game because you're hitting a ball and you're not hitting it into a net inside the gym," coach Joe Waksmonski said. "There's that, then it was good for our pitchers to get into a game situation, work on their pitches and work on pounding the zone."
Rhinelander appeared to be in a good spot in the first game, up 5-1 heading to the bottom of the seventh with ace pitcher Jacob DeMeyer on the hill. But DeMeyer gave up a single, a walk and a hit batsman to load the bases with nobody out. An error on a throw down to third allowed one run to score and then a two-out, two-run single by Mitchell Ahrens cut the Hodags' lead to one. DeMeyer was finally able to buckle down, get Nolan Lemke to ground out to second and end the game.
"Things kind of got away right at the beginning of the inning. We fell behind in counts, fell behind with walks and I think there was a hit batsman in there too, but he was able to battle through that and get us out of there."
Rhinelander scored two insurance runs in the top of the seventh which proved critical. After Lemke walked the bases loaded with nobody out Josh Randolph hit a sacrifice fly to score Cole Spaulding and Brad Quade scored following an overthrow to third.
"We had pressure on them throughout that game with runners in scoring position," Waksmonski said. "A couple of innings we capitalized and a couple of innings we didn't but we were able to push across just enough."
Rhinelander also got a run on a throwing error in the first that allowed DeMeyer to score. RBI singles by DeMeyer and Randolph gave the Hodags a 3-0 lead in the fifth.
Lefty Bryce Schickert started and allowed no runs on two hits with six strikeouts over 3 2/3 innings before turning over to DeMeyer, who picked up the win despite allowing four runs on three hits with four walks and six strikeouts over the final 3 1/3.
"We had stretches where we looked really good, really dominant," Waksmonski said of the pitching Tuesday. "We had stretches where we were struggling to find the strike zone and falling behind hitters. A lot of that is the first day outside. It's good we're able to get it out of the way in a non-conference setting."
Comer was dominant in game two against Crivitz, striking out nine and allowing only one hit over 4 2/3 innings. He was pulled at that point, after 74 pitches, making him eligible to pitch again on Friday. The senior did it with his bat as well, going 2-for-2 in the nightcap with a triple and a pair of RBIs.
"He's one of our leaders and someone we look to, to get the team going," Waksmonski said. "When he's pitching, he has a certain presence on the mound where it's his field. That's the way he works. He's quick, he pounds the zone. At the dish today he put the ball in play, but the ball in play hard and had a couple of big hits for us."
Comer singled in Quade for the game's opening run in the first. Quade hit a two-run single as part of a three-run second for the Hodags and Comer's triple capped off a three-run fourth that put the Hodags ahead 7-0.
Randolph worked the final 2 1/3 innings for Rhinelander, striking out six and walking five.
Rhinelander collected 10 hits in the second game, including a three-hit day from right fielder Owen White, and a two-hit afternoon from Teagan Guckenberg, who both made their varsity debuts Tuesday.
"Those batters were able to get good pitches and were able to put good swings on it," Waksmonski said. "That's always encouraging to see when you have the bottom of your order hitting, you're able to put some bigger numbers on the scoreboard like we did in Game 2."
Waksmonski said Tuesday's outing went a long way toward answering some of the positional questions the Hodags had entering the season, including who would back up Comer at catcher. Freshman Walker Hartman drew the assignment with Comer on the hill in game two and performed admirably, according to Waksmonski.
"The varsity game wasn't too big for him and he's catching Brad Comer, one of our top pitchers and one of the top pitchers in our part of the state. That's not an easy assignment for your first possible draw," he said.
Rhinelander's scheduled doubleheader against Lakeland for today has been postponed due to field conditions. Those games have been rescheduled for Monday, May 7. The Hodags have picked up a non-conference game Friday at Stratford with first pitch slated for 4 p.m.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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