Schneider’s Monsters edge Bixby’s Bears in battle of former Hodag aces

Isaac Bixby had a game playing against a number of his former teammates Friday night, but the River Monsters got the last laugh in the newest installment of a decades-old rivalry between two Northwoods cities.

Joe Schneider pitched eight scoreless innings and Joe Zuiker’s RBI single in the fourth inning was the difference as Rhinelander edged the Antigo Polar Bears 1-0 in a WBA/BABA interleague game at Stafford Field. 

    Antigo’s Isaac Bixby pitches during a WBA/BABA interleague game at Stafford Field Friday, Aug. 4. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Bixby, a Rhinelander High School alum, collected three hits at the plate and struck out 12 over eight innings for the Bears, who he helped to a BABA title last summer after his freshman season at UW-Platteville. 

Joe Schneider, who starred in the pitching rotation with Bixby in both the RHS baseball team’s run to the WIAA sectional finals in 2021 and the Rhinelander Post 7 Rebel’s trip to the Class AA American Legion state tournament last summer, was every bit as strong on the mound. He scattered seven hits, struck out nine and was the benefactor of a couple of key plays to come out the winner. 

“The pitching tonight, both sides, were fantastic,” River Monsters assistant coach Ken Zuiker said. “Obviously, a little extra amp from Isaac early on. You could tell that but then two excellent pitchers settled in and did what you expect them to do.”

Both Bixby and Schneider said it was surreal playing against each other — something they haven’t done since they were on separate Rhinelander squads in the Northwoods Babe Ruth League as youngsters. 

“It’s definitely an indescribable feeling,” Bixby said. “You can’t describe it, to go play against your teammates and stuff like that. Yeah, obviously we didn’t come out on top, but I’ve got to stay true to my Hodag blood and I’m happy that the River Monsters came out on top. I’m happy with the way I played.”

Added Schneider, “He definitely got the better of me tonight, three hits off me. He definitely got the better of me, but we took the W.”

Joe Schneider walked against Bixby to lead off the fourth, but was picked off first base. Moments later Sam Schneider singled to right. 

Bixby nearly had the younger of the two Schneider siblings picked off first, but the ball popped out of AJ Kirsch’s mitt and into right field, allowing Sam Schneider to advance. Joe Zuiker followed with an RBI single to left that drove in the game’s lone run.

“(Bixby’s) a very, very savvy, confident pitcher. His move was great. Legitimately, we got two guys picked off,” coach Zuiker said. “One resulted favorably for us when their first baseman dropped the ball and we made it hurt. They made they error. We followed it up with a run-scoring single and that’s the ball game.

Antigo thought it took the lead on a contentious play in the sixth inning. With the bases loaded and one out, Cole Shepherd hit a ground ball to second baseman Cody Everson. Jed Weix stopped while running to second and retreated back to first in order to avoid getting tagged. Everson threw to first to force out Shepherd while Weix got into a rundown. Both Eli Fleischman and Kirsch crossed home plate before the rundown ended with Weix running over Kurt Zuiker who was covering second. 

Following a lengthy discussion, and a heated plea from the Antigo dugout, Weix was deemed out for retreating on the base paths before Shepherd was forced out. The force double play negated any runs scoring and ended the inning. 

“I know some calls didn’t go the way that some people think they should have but, all and all, I had fun. It was a good night and I’m really glad that we got to do this,” Bixby said. 

While fun, it was clear the juices of the Rhinelander-Antigo rivalry were near a boil by that point. 

“Clearly, because things got heated, we wanted to win the game and clearly, because it’s Antigo, we wanted to win the game. We’ve been on the wrong end of it many, many times,” coach Zuiker said.

    Rhinelander’s Sam Schneider, left, looks toward third base after tagging Antigo’s Donovan Rogers out at home plate during the seventh inning of a WBA/BABA interleague game at Stafford Field Friday, Aug. 4. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Antigo had another chance to tie the game in the seventh. After Donovan Rogers reached on an error, Bixby collected his third hit of the night — a double to the left-center gap. The Bears tried to send Rogers all the way home on the play, but he was thrown out with plenty to spare. 

Joe Schneider worked around a one-out double by Logan Doering in the eighth by striking out Kirsch and getting Weix to ground out to third. 

Nick Spencer worked a perfect ninth for the save, but even that had some drama. Cole Shepherd began the inning with a well-hit ball to the right-center gap that Joe Zuiker flagged down with a diving catch. Will Kubeny followed by putting a charge on a ball into center, but Kurt Zuiker was positioned well for out No. 2. From there, Spencer got Rogers to ground out to third to end it.

“It kinds of takes the wind out of their sails a little bit when you’re pounding the ball and get robbed,” coach Zuiker said. “The next ball was hit very, very hard. Kurt didn’t have to range as far, but he clearly had a bead on it. You look up when you see it hit and got, ‘uh oh,’ and then you got, ‘nah, it’s all good.’”

Sam Schneider had two of Rhinelander’s four hits on the night as the River Monsters finished the regular season 9-5 overall. Joe Schneider was 0-for-1 against Bixby with a walk and a sacrifice bunt, which came back in the first inning.

“I was surprised he bunted against me,” Bixby joked. “I’m like, ‘What the heck? I thought we came to swing. What are we doing?’”

“I thought, with no outs, runners on first and second, Sam on deck, I’m like, ‘All right, I’ll lay down in a bunt and Sam will put the ball in play and we’ll get a run,’” Joe Schneider replied. “But he pitched out of it well.”

It all sets up Rhinelander for a difficult postseason draw in the WBA regional tournament. The River Monsters received the No. 22 seed and will held to Ellsworth, some 3 1/2 hours from home, to face third-seeded Holmen and 27th-seeded Ellsworth in a three-team round robin. The winner of the pool will advance to the WBA state tournament the following weekend. 

“I don’t know anything about Ellsworth. Holmen has always been a program we’ve admired. They’re going to be strong, no doubt about it. It’s a baseball community, big, big challenge there. Ellsworth’s a mystery at this point,” Ken Zuiker said. 

Added Joe Schneider, “I think if we just keep playing our game and play defense, I think we’ll at least get one and then we just have to scrap and battle for two.”

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].