July 16, 2018 at 1:03 p.m.
Ending on a high note
Rebels finish regular season with pair of convincing wins
Ending on a high note
The Rebels put a cap on a 17-1 regular season with a pair of victories over the weekend, defeating Medford 10-0 Friday night in Whittlesey and following that with a 7-1 win Sunday at Clintonville.
The Rebels are collecting hits up and down the lineup and Rhinelander's pitchers have shut down their opponents over the last few outings.
"I can't say enough about the way, all season long, every game, they showed up to play," Rebels manager Dan Huhnstock said. "We hit up and down the lineup and made our plays defensively."
Rhinelander 10, Medford 0
Rhinelander's hit parade against Medford continued on Friday night. Six days after collecting nine runs on 16 hits in a win over the Raiders in Merrill, the Rebels scored 10 times on 14 hits in a 10-0 victory at Mike Rogier Stadium in Whittlesey.
"They're very accomplished hitters and they're proving that night in and night out," Huhnstock said. "Like I said, it makes my job really easy."
It all started for the Rebels with nobody on and two outs in the first. A walk and four hits later, Rhinelander led 4-0 and cruised from there.
Jacob DeMeyer started the rally with a triple to the right center gap. Brad Comer followed with a double to the almost identical location to get the Rebels on the board. After Bryce Schickert drew a walk, Abe Laggis singled up the middle to score Comer and Jacob Dreifuerst followed with a two-run double.
All the damage was done against Medford's Nick Retterath, who had carried a no hitter into the fifth inning during high school play this spring versus Rhinelander.
"We got their starting pitcher out of the game in the first inning and set the tone for the rest of the game," Huhnstock said.
Rhinelander tagged reliever Trenton Woebbeking for 10 hits over the final five frames, scoring twice in the third, fourth and sixth innings.
Dreifuerst and Walker Hartman had RBI singles in the third. Following a pair of infield hits in the fourth, Comer's groundout brought in Easton Senoraske and Laggis singled home another run. Comer added an RBI double in the sixth and later scored on the a throwing error.
His run proved to be the game clincher and Comer sealed the six-inning win with a diving catch near the left field fence to rob John McMurry of extra bases and the game-extending RBI.
Schickert scattered three hits over six innings and struck out five in the win.
"Schicky was just dealing, a very efficient night for him," Huhnstock said.
Rhinelander 7, Clintonville 1
Rhinelander scored in every inning except the second on Sunday, and got a strong start from Comer on the mound as it put a bow on the regular season with a 7-1 over Clintonville at Olen Park.
The Rebels took the lead for good in the third inning and kept the Diamond Cat bats quiet after the opening inning. Comer struck out seven in a row at one point before turning the game over to the bullpen in the fifth inning.
"He set the tone for us starting on the mound today," Huhnstock said of Comer's pitching performance which saw him scatter a pair of hits over four innings. "That's that veteran leadership that hopefully we carry through the regional tournament."
Senoraske gave Rhinelander the lead in the first, scoring on a throwing error after stealing third. DeMeyer gave the Rebels the lead for good in the third, singling to score Payton Johnson. Senoraske scored on a passed ball to make it 3-1.
From there, Rhinelander incrementally added to its lead. Danny Zuiker doubled in Dreifuerst in the fourth, Comer's bloop single brought in Senoraske in the fifth, Randolph singled to right to bring in Hartman in the sixth and Zuiker singled home Comer in the seventh.
Zuiker, hitting seventh in the lineup, had a big two-hit day for the Rebels.
"Two hits out of Danny. Payton had a big hit. Up and down the lineup, that's the way it's been all year. Somebody, every game from the lower part of the lineup has a two-hit game," Huhnstock said.
Senoraske finished 3-for4 in the contest while DeMeyer was 2-for-4.
The Rebels' lone blemish occurred in the first inning as Hartman and Dreifuerst both tried to track down a pop-up in foul territory between first base and home plate. Dreifuerst made the catch, but Logan Leisenfelder alertly sprinted in from third when he realized no one was covering home.
Randolph, Senoraske and Martin Hoger each pitched an inning of scoreless relief against the last year's Class A Legion state runners up.
"We trotted out four pitchers in this game against a very good Clintonville team and we walk away with a 7-1 win and a run they probably shouldn't have had if we were paying a little bit closer attention," Huhnstock said.
Up next
Rhinelander will host the Class AA Region 2 tournament beginning on Friday. The Rebels take on defending regional champ and state runner-up Antigo in Friday's nightcap at 8 p.m. Northwoods and Shawano make up the rest of the four-team bracket for the double elimination tournament that will run through Sunday.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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