July 25, 2022 at 2:02 p.m.
It only took one
Rebels sweep regionals, end 10-year state drought
It only took one
It took only one key swing of the bat from one of the team's best hitters in the championship game Sunday to finally get the Rebels back to state for the first time since 2012.
Joe Schneider's bases-loaded two-out hit in the fifth inning was the only scoring play as Rhinelander held off Antigo 2-0 to win the regional tournament at Athletic Park in Merrill.
Ryan Jamison scattered three hits in a shutout effort for a team that had finished runner-up in three of the last four regionals tournament.
To finally break through, the Rebels had to get through a pair of arch-nemeses and two state tournament qualifiers from 2021. Schneider and Isaac Bixby turned a highlight-reel double play to preserve a 2-1 victory over Medford in the first round of the tournament on Friday. A 5-3 victory over Antigo Saturday had the Rebels in the catbird seat.
Rhinelander needed to win only once Sunday to make it to state. Antigo needed to win the first game to force a winner-take-all title game later Sunday to conclude the double-elimination tournament.
Antigo kept Rhinelander from the state tournament in 2017 and 2019. There was no Legion season in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Rebels were two innings away from state last year before Medford shocked Rhinelander with an 11-run inning.
The Rebels won the Class AA state title in 2010 and finished third in 2012. Finally, Rhinelander has made it back.
"It feels great. What an awesome bunch of guys, just absolutely phenomenal," Rebels manager Dan Huhnstock said. "They played great competition down here all weekend. I think we were the best team coming in and we're the best team going out."
Joe Schneider, who had three of the Rebels' five hits Sunday, let a first-pitch fastball go by for a strike with the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth. He then sliced a curveball on the next pitch foul to right to get down to his last strike.
After taking the next pitch high, Schneider delivered with a hard-hit ball into right that plated Kolby Ridderbusch and Bixby.
"I was thinking, 'all right, I've got two pitches to hit and I've got to have one swing here,' big gap to the right side and I just punched it through."
"He came through in the clutch," Huhnstock said. "His hitting really picked up toward the end of the tournament here. Yesterday and today, when we needed him the most, he was there."
The Rebels needed some clutch plays earlier in the fifth to even set the stage for Schneider. Ridderbusch appeared to be caught in no-man's land between first and second after Jacksen Smith was unable to get down a bunt with one out. Ridderbusch made a break for second and barely beat a late throw to the bag. Smith eventually grounded out to short before Bixby hit a single that would have scored Ridderbusch if not for a strong defensive play by Antigo shortstop Reed Kuenzli to keep the ball in the infield. Bixby then stole second and Jamison drew a full-count walk the load the bases for Schneider, who went a combined 6-for-7 in two games against Antigo in the tournament.
Joe Schneider delivered the key hit but, otherwise, it was the Jamison show on the mound. He held Antigo without a hit over the final four innings and needed only 90 pitches to get through seven scoreless frames.
"He was in control the whole game. He said they weren't going to score on him. He held them to that," Huhnstock said.
Jamison had plenty of help behind him as Rhinelander's defense turned three double plays, including one on a base-running blunder by Mason Gray that ended the fourth after Will Kubeny flew out to right.
Antigo's last real threat came in the fifth as Luke Pecore was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, moved to second on a Jacob Hanus bunt and got to third with two outs after a pickoff throw by Sam Schneider to second got away. Jamison struck out Dane Cornelius to get out of that jam and allowed only one more base runner, a one-out walk to Kubeny in the seventh.
"My defense behind me, we had three double plays. Joe ranging behind him to get the final out. I just pitched to contact and let our defense do the rest," Jamison said. "We scratched two across at the right time and held them, and that's all it took.
Gray kept Rhinelander in check much of the way, striking out five in a row at one point. He finished with eight strikeouts and four walks in defeat.
"He done a great job pitching. He pitched his heart out, I'm sure, and we finally got through for a couple of runs and that was huge," Huhnstock said.
Rhinelander 2, Medford 1
The Rebels got the easy path to the title thanks to playing through the winner's side of the bracket. That might not have happened if not for a college-level play made Friday by two college-level players.
Medford had the tying run at third and runners at the corners with one out in the seventh as Braxton Weissmiller hit a ground ball up the middle. Joe Schneider, heading to UW-Stevens Point next fall, raced behind second and flagged it down on a hop. He flipped to second. Bixby, a standout pitcher at UW-Platteville, made the catch, turned and threw to first to double off Weissmiller and give the Rebels a dramatic victory.
"It was a game-saver right there," Rebels manager Dan Huhnstock said. "Just getting through the heart of their order with runners on base. The tying run would have scored if we didn't turn that double play. What an awesome turn, acrobatic, web-gem material there."
Both Schneider and Bixby said it was simply a matter of trusting their reflexes.
"When it's a fastball coming down, a chopper up the middle and you don't have time to think about it, those are the easier plays actually," Schneider said. "My only play was to flip it to Bix. There was no chance at (first). So I said, 'all right, let's just flip it and see what happens.'"
Added Bixby, "The heat of the moment, the nerves were gone. Joe flipped it to me and I whipped it over to first to get out of the game. I went home that night and didn't even realize the tying run was at third. You don't even think about, just make the routine plays."
Friday's opener was a classic pitchers' duel most of the way between Bixby and Medford's Logan Baumgartner. Bixby struck out six over six innings while Baumgartner fanned nine over seven innings in a hard fought battle between the Nos. 2 and 4 teams in the Class AA state rankings.
"I expected a 2-1, 3-2 game and that's exactly what we got. Every play was an important play in the game," Huhnstock said.
Rhinelander strung together three straight hits in the top of the third that ultimately proved to be the difference in the ball game.
Smith and Bixby began the inning with back-to-back singles before Ryan Jamison launched one into center, scoring Smith. Medford's Logan Searles could not handle Jamison's base hit cleanly, allowing Bixby to score all the way from first and give the Rebels a 2-0 lead.
"We caught one little break, and it's a good thing we did, because we needed it," Huhnstock said.
Bixby worked the first five innings scoreless for Rhinelander, but Medford caught break in the sixth. Baumgartner doubled to start the frame and scored when Max Dietzman hit a ground ball to short that took a hard, high hop over Joe Schneider fo a base hit. Parker Lissner had another seeing-eye hit as Medford loaded the bases with one out in the inning, but Bixby struck out Ty Metz and Ridderbusch made a diving grab on a Searles fly to right center to strand the tying and go-ahead runs and end the sixth.
With Bixby near the pitching maximum, the Rebels went with Jamison to close out the game in the seventh. The Raiders got two aboard against him to start as Mudgett reached on a ball that Devyn Orth couldn't play at first following a hard hop. Tanner Hraby then singled up the middle on a play that Bixby tried to stab and step on second at the same time, but his momentum carried him off the bag before he had the ball in his possession.
Baumgartner then flew out to Ridderbusch in center, deep enough to allow Mudgett to take and head to third. Hraby was nearly to second when the ball was caught and had to retreat back to first.
Weissmiller grounded into the game-ending double play five pitches later.
"Kolby gets the ball in quick and keeps the runner at first and third, big there too. We did the little things right," Huhnstock said.
Rhinelander 5, Antigo 3
A three-run fourth inning proved to be just enough cushion for the Rebels to get by the Typhoon in the winner's bracket Saturday afternoon.
Joe Schneider got the call on the hill and went six innings, while Smith got the save working around a pair of hits in the seventh.
Jamison again came up with the clutch hit, a two-run, two-out triple in the fourth that plated Ridderbusch and Bixby. Joe Schneider doubled behind that to put the Rebels ahead 5-1.
Antigo clawed back with two in the top of the fifth on an RBI triple by Caden Kautza and an RBI single by Gray, but got not closer in the contest, despite several chances.
"Any time we play Antigo you can expect a tight, well-played game," Huhnstock said. "They're a veteran squad. They've got a lot of tournament experience. They're always going to give you a game, no matter who's pitching for what team. It's going to be a tight, hard-fought, close game."
Rhinelander took the lead in the first on another misplay in the outfield. Bixby singled, took second on a heads-up piece of base running on a Jamison foul out to right and then came around as Joe Schneider singled on a ball that got past Gray on a hop in left.
Antigo tied it in the third as Trevin Walbeck doubled and scored on a Connor Kolz sacrifice fly. Rhinelander retook the lead in the bottom of the third on a high fly ball that got behind Walbeck in center, dropped in for a double, scoring Jamison.
The Typhoon had chances, stranding 10 base runners in the contest - including runners in scoring position in five separate innings.
Joe Schneider fanned Luke Pecore and then got Jacob Hanus to fly out to get out of Antigo's two-run fifth. A hit batter and an infield hit by Walbeck gave Antigo two aboard with one out in the sixth. From there Schneider, nearing the end of his pitch count, struck out Kautza and got Kolz to pop out to end the inning.
Smith gave up a one-out hit to Will Kubeny in the seventh and then a two-out hit to Hanus that took a tough hop past Bixby at second. Smith responded by striking out Hunter Aiuppy to end it.
"That's just good defense and good pitching, a combination of that," Huhnstock said. "We need that in any tight ball game. That's the difference in the game."
Joe Schneider went six innings in the win, allowing three runs on eight hits with six strikeouts.
State ahead
The AA state tournament begins Friday in Fort Atkinson with the Rebels (21-3) facing River Falls . Friday's game will take place at 1 p.m. at Jones Park. The Rebels are guaranteed two games in the double-elimination tournament, but want to play a lot more than that.
"That was our goal to get it done this year," Huhnstock said of getting to state. "We've achieved that part of the goal. Now we've got to play some more ball and finish out our goal."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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