June 18, 2018 at 12:59 p.m.
Rebels 'rain' at home
Rhinelander goes 3-0, wins weather-plagued Rebel Invite
Rebels 'rain' at home
Rhinelander went 3-0 in the weather-shortened tournament Saturday and Sunday at Stafford Field, besting Clintonville, Tomahawk and Chequamegon for the tournament title.
Rain washed out play on Friday night and delayed the action on three separate occasions Saturday. Sunday's action started a half hour late due to overnight rain showers and a decision was made early in the weekend to scrap the placement rounds due to the frequent interruptions.
"It was a long weekend. I just can't say enough for all the volunteer help that we had and the other three teams just going with the flow with the curveballs Mother Nature threw at us," Rebels manager Dan Huhnstock said. "It was incredible, the amount of rain we got, that we were still able to get in a solid tournament."
When the teams were able to play, the Rebels excelled thanks to strong pitching efforts from starters Jacob DeMeyer, Josh Randolph and Bryce Schickert as they defeated Clintonville 5-4, Chequamegon 10-0 and Tomahawk 8-0.
"All tournament long, all three of our starting pitchers threw terrific for us, which is really a luxury when you have that in a round-robin or weekend tournament," Huhnstock said. "When you get some length out of your pitchers, it makes life a whole lot easier."
Rhinelander 5, Clintonville 4
The closest game of the weekend for the Rebels probably should not have been that close. The Rebels jumped out to an early lead, but stranded 10 base runners and then made a few key defensive mistakes that allowed the Diamond Cats back into the contest.
Rhinelander scored all of its runs in the first three innings off starter Logan Leisenfelder. Brad Comer and Schickert came up with RBI singles as part of a two-run first. After coming up empty with the bases loaded in the second, Rhinelander scored three in the third as Randolph and Easton Senoraske were both hit by pitches with the bases loaded, ending Leisenfelder's day. DeMeyer singled off reliever Jared Cartright to drive in another run and give the Rebels a 5-0 lead.
DeMeyer took a no-hitter into the fourth inning, which was abruptly ended on a Kyle Finger lead off solo home run. Leisenfelder reached on an error to keep the inning alive and Keenan Doornink drove him in with an RBI single.
Colton Kluth reached on an error in the fifth. He and Trenton Vollner both scored when the Hodags misfired on a potential double play ball.
Clintonville threatened again in the sixth as Doornink singled and stole second, but DeMeyer struck out Jacob Virgutz and Presley Rosenow to end the threat. Comer pitched a perfect seventh to earn the save.
"The game probably shouldn't have been as close as it was but, that's baseball and we did just enough to win," Huhnstock said. "Credit our guys for keeping their heads in the game and finishing it off. That was key for us to get off to a really good start. Heck of a pitching performance by Jacob in that game. We had a few miscues behind him."
DeMeyer struck out seven and scattered four hits over six innings of work. He and Schickert added two-hit days at the plate.
Rhinelander 10, Chequamegon 0
Saturday's second game for the Rebels was not nearly as dramatic. Once again, Rhinelander jumped out to an early 5-0 lead but this time tacked on five more in the fifth to win via the mercy rule, 10-0.
Randolph was dominant on the hill in a 10-strikeout performance and ended up one out shy of an abbreviated five-inning perfect game. A two-out pinch-hit soft liner to right by Seth Scherwinski in the fifth was the only base runner in the game for the Screaming Eagles.
The Rebels pounced on Chequmegon right away, loading the bases with nobody out in the first. Randolph scored on a wild pitch and Brad Quade added a two-run single to give Rhinelander and early 3-0 lead. Randolph singled and scored on a DeMeyer groundout in the second and Quade added an RBI single to extend the lead to five.
Things fell apart defensively for Chequamegon in the fifth as Schickert reached on a dropped third, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored when Martin Hoger reached on an error. Hoger then scored as Seth Scherwinski's pickoff attempt sailed toward the visitor's bullpen and a throw to try to retire Hoger at third sailed wide.
From there, back-to-back walks and a single by Randolph loaded the bases for Liam Stevens, who delivered a pinch-hit two-run single. Chequamegon then intentionally walked DeMeyer before Comer ended the game with a long single to right.
In addition to a dominant pitching performance, Randolph finished the game 3-for-4 at the plate. Quade went 2-for-3 with 3 RBIs.
Rhinelander 8, Tomahawk 0
Schickert struck out seven and scattered five hits in a shutout effort, and DeMeyer homered twice as the Rebels clinched the tournament title Sunday with an 8-0 win over the Cubs.
DeMeyer broke the scoreless tie with a two-run shot to left in the third inning. The Rebels tacked on five in the fourth and DeMeyer put a cap on the scoring with a solo blast to left center in the sixth.
"With (Schickert) on the mound and the way he threw and some absolutely terrific defensive plays by Brad Quade and Jacob hitting a couple of bombs, it made it for a relatively comfortable win," Huhnstock said.
Quade made a stellar diving catch int he first inning to rob Jacob Matti of at least one RBI after Shawn Dirkx and Nick Kahle and singled back-to-back off the left-handed Schickert to start the game. Quade made another nice diving grab in the fifth. The only other time Tomahawk moved a runner into scoring position came in the fourth when Jacob Matti and Jakob Kahle singled to put two on with one out. Schickert got a couple of ground balls to work out of the jam.
Rhinelander blew the game open by batting around in the fourth. Danny Zuiker had and RBI single, followed by an RBI double by Quade. Comer grounded into a double play with the bases loaded, allowing another run to cross before Quade came around on error. Hoger capped off the scoring with an RBI single.
The Hodags collected 11 hits in the finale including three from catcher Walker Hartman and two from Hoger.
"I think the whole tournament we had contributions up and down the lineup, which is really nice to see," Huhnstock said. Some of the guys who didn't get a lot of playing time during school ball, or a lot of at-bats, are starting to round into shape here."
Up next
Rhinelander (6-0, 3-0 GNLC) will take its perfect record into a showdown against Mosinee Wednesday night at Stafford Field.
Rhinelander lost three times to Mosinee during the spring season, including a 7-6 loss to the Indians in the WIAA Division 2 regional finals. It will be only the second game of the summer for Mosinee as its Legion schedule was delayed due to its high school team playing in the WIAA state tournament last week.
First pitch is set for 7 p.m.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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