July 18, 2022 at 9:42 a.m.
Heading back to state
Hodag Little League downs Wausau National twice, wins District 5 title
Heading back to state
As it turns out, the stoppage might have been the best thing that happened for the Hodags.
Rhinelander defeated Wausau National 9-8 on a walkoff single in the sixth by Tommy Eades when play resumed Wednesday and clinched a spot in the Wisconsin state tournament for a second straight year by defeating Wausau National again 10-0 Friday night at Doepke Park in Rib Mountain.
Because starting pitcher Blake Bauer had already thrown 45 pitches Tuesday when play was suspended, he was not eligible to return to the mound when play resumed. Three Hodag relievers did just enough to slow down Wausau Wednesday and Rhinelander rallied to score three unanswered runs in the final three innings to win it.
The stoppage also allowed Bauer to be eligible to pitch Friday, based on Little League pitch count rules. He went the distance and the Hodags were never challenged, ending it on a Douglas Hartmann RBI single in the fifth inning.
"It's just so awesome," team manager Dan Bauer said. "They've been putting in a lot of hard work and they deserve all the credit. We've been practicing before our games. Everyone's been showing up, working hard and I can just see their growth over the last two weeks."
The Hodags turned a 3-1 lead into a 6-1 advantage once play resumed Wednesday following Tuesday night's thunderstorm. Blake Bauer helped his own cause with a bases-clearing three-run double with two out in the bottom of the second.
Wausau fought back in the third, however. A two-out, two-run single by Anders Bejerke cut the lead to 6-3 and the Nationals took an 8-6 lead in the fourth as seven straight batters reached at one point in the inning, including a two-run single by Kam Blasky, a two-run double by Bejerke and an RBI fielder's choice by Kyler Kruzan.
Eades came on in relief to get the final two outs of the fourth. The Hodags fought back to tie it in the bottom of the inning. Brayden Dervetski singled to start the inning before Vince White hit an RBI double and scored from second on a groundout by Bauer to tie the game at eight.
Wausau threatened with two aboard with one out in the fifth, but Dervetski came on in relief to strike out Parker Helke and Bejerke to get out of the inning.
Neither team threatened again into the bottom of the sixth. The Nationals intentionally walked White, who hit four home runs in the tournament, but Blake Bauer singled to put the winning run in scoring position and Eades ended it with a base hit to right.
"The kids have been really confident lately and that's the biggest thing," Dan Bauer said. "They've learned to play as a team and they don't get down on themselves now. They stayed confident. They were determined they were going to win and that's what happened."
Wausau National beat cross-town Wausau American 8-6 Thursday night to get another crack at Rhinelander, but Friday's contest turned into a coronation for the Hodags.
The Hodags jumped ahead 3-0 in the fist inning and never looked back, scoring in every inning except the third and ending the game via the 10-run rule.
Dervetski doubled in the first to get things started for Rhinelander and scored when Blake Bauer's fly to left was dropped. Eades followed with a two-run shot to center to give Rhinelander a 3-0 lead.
Eades added another RBI in the second, drawing a two-out bases-loaded walk.
Rhinelander got three more in the fifth on a two-run home run by White and a two-out RBI single by Matthew Haselton. White drove in one more with a double in the sixth, Blake Bauer reached safely on a fielder's choice that scored Henry Schmitz and Eades singled before Hartmann ended it with a drive to the fence in center.
Rhinelander had plenty of offense throughout the tournament, scoring 54 runs in six games.
"We had kids step up and have some huge hits for us," Dan Bauer said.
Blake Bauer worked out of a couple of jams as he scattered six hits and struck out two over five innings in the victory. Wausau had a runner in scoring position in every inning, but left eight runners on base. Helke was tagged out at the plate trying to score from third on a wild pitch in the third. Bauer got Peter Winter to ground out to third to get out of a bases-loaded jam the fourth and White turned a double play on a ground ball to short in the fifth after the Nationals threatened with back-to-back base hits to start the inning.
The Hodags had the luxury of working through the winner's bracket on Friday night. Had they lost, it would have forced a winner-take-all championship game on Saturday with White, the team's ace, eligible to throw.
"We had our ace available for (Saturday), but you never know what can happen, so it's always nice to put it away when the opportunity's there," Dan Bauer said.
The Hodags' tournament run began inauspiciously with a 10-7 loss in pool play to Wausau American. Rhinelander needed to win its final two pool games to advance and ended up winning five in a row, outscoring their opponents 47-10 in the process.
"That was the biggest thing from our first-game loss to advancing now," Dan Bauer said. "They've learned to play together and play as a team and have confidence."
The Wisconsin 12U state tournament will be held July 22-29 hosted by West Madison Little League. After opening ceremonies on Friday, pool play will run July 23-27, with the top four teams out of the six state qualifiers advancing to the semifinals July 28.
The state championship game will take place July 29.
"I think the biggest thing is for us to go down there, have fun and enjoy the experience and try to get as far as we can while we're down there," Bauer said.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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