June 28, 2021 at 7:58 a.m.
After quick turnaround, Rebels beat Mosinee to open Legion season
After quick turnaround, Rebels beat Mosinee to open Legion season
Ian Miller drove in four runs, Quinn Lamers added three hits and Rhinelander picked up a 9-6 victory over Mosinee to kick off the American Legion baseball season at Stafford Field.
When the Post 7 Rebels took the field Wednesday night, many of the players were 24 hours removed from a 3-1 loss in a WIAA D2 sectional final to the No. 1 team in the state, Denmark. Any questions of how Rhinelander would respond were answered with a two-run first inning. The Rebels got four more runs in the fifth off reliever Seann Bryant to take the lead for good.
"It's a very resilient bunch of kids we've got here," Rebels manager Dan Huhnstock said. "They're ball players. We didn't have the full squad tonight. Some guys played out of position and stuff, the batting order was changed around a little bit and they just came and played ball.
"It was good for everybody, the coaching staff, players to get right back at it and go win a game."
Both teams stung the ball on a night where the wind blew out at Stafford Field. Mosinee edged Rhinelander 11-9 in the hit department, but the Hodags did more with their base runners, stranding only five runners on base to Mosinee's 11.
Down 4-3 in the fifth, the Rebels jumped on Bryant as he took the mound. Walks by Isaac Bixby and Walker Hartman bookended a Lamers single to load the bases with nobody out. Miller followed with an RBI single to deep right center followed by a two-run double from Kolby Ridderbusch that quickly ended Bryant's time on the hill. Devyn Orth hit a sacrifice fly off Eli Miland to give Rhinelander a 7-4 edge.
"That was big, after we gave up the lead to be able to come right back and take it back. Like I said, a resilient bunch of kids," Huhnstock said.
Mosinee scratched across a run in the top of the sixth, but the Rebels answered back with two in the bottom half of the inning as Miller tripled to the right center gap with two outs, scoring Caleb Shefveland and Lamers. Miller, who also had a sacrifice fly in the first, finished the night 2-for-3 at the plate.
"Ian Miller really came alive tonight. I think he had three of them that were gappers," Huhnstock said. "One of them got tracked down, but the other two one-hopped the fence. It was a really strong appearance by Ian tonight."
After expending its top two pitchers - Bixby and Joe Schneider - in Tuesday's sectionals, the Rebels used Wednesday as a bullpen game for its staff.
Lamers started and went 2 2/3 innings on the mound for the Rebels, giving up single runs in the second and the third with a couple of strikeouts. Ryan Jamison got the win in relief, going 3 1/3 innings, allowing three runs on five hits. Orth pitched the seventh for Rhinelander, allowing a run on a hit.
"We were hoping to go three deep and that's what we did. We had Walker ready, willing and able, but he'll get his chance yet," Huhnstock said.
The Rebels were scheduled to take part in a triangular on Saturday at Antigo, which was canceled due to rain. It was supposed to be the fourth time Rhinelander and Antigo had played each other this month, and a possible lookahead to the Class AA regionals next month. There are no plans to make up the games.
Rhinelander hosted Merrill Monday night in a game that concluded after deadline. The Rebels are back to GNLC play tomorrow night at home against Minocqua before traveling to Eagle River to take on Northwoods Friday.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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