For Wausau Pilot & Review
WAUSAU – After an intense battle, the Wausau Woodchucks fell to the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters 6-3 in the opening game of the Northwoods League baseball sub-divisional playoff series Sunday at Athletic Park.
Wausau (38-33) held their own, led by pitcher Matt Milner (Southwest Oklahoma State), only allowing the Rafters (57-17) to score one run through four innings.
The Chucks tied things up in the bottom of the fourth inning when an RBI single to right field by Elie Kligman (Wake Forest) drove in Chase Hug (Evansville), who had singled to right field.
The Rafters managed to sneak in a run to retake the lead in the top of the fifth inning. The Woodchucks battled back, with Aidan Corn (Pasco-Hernando State) hitting a single to center field, then was advanced to second from a walk by Maurice Gomez (Keiser), but were unable to capitalize on the opportunity and left them stranded.
Not willing to go down easily, Wausau came back with bats blazing in the bottom of the sixth. Tyler Cox (Eckerd) was walked, then made it to second base on a Kligman single to center field. Garrett Hill (North Dakota State) blasted a single to left field to bring in Cox to score the tying run.
The Chucks battled tooth and nail and managed to take the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning on an electrifying RBI single from Hug to score Corn. The Rafters scratched across four more runs to take Game 1 from the Woodchucks.
Game 2 of the best-of-3 series will be Monday at 6:35 p.m. at Witter Field in Wisconsin Rapids.
