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Schools

Wildcats Win Two of Three Baseball Games in Waupun

USM loses final game by just one run.

The baseball team participated in a tournament hosted by Waupun High School Saturday. The Wildcats beat Beloit Turner 6-3 in their first game and defeated Medford 9-6 in their second game. Mauston defeated USM 8-7 in the championship game.

Game One

The opening game of the tournament started slowly as neither team scored in the first three innings. Turner put two across in the bottom of the fourth. With one out, Brandon Noack walked and the next batter, Evan Metzger, reached on an error. Seth Pickert singled to drive in the runners.

USM moved ahead at the top of the fifth. Najad Agrawal led off and was hit by a pitch. Tommy Pennington singled and Lane Stanford was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Josh Baker doubled to clear the bases and put the Wildcats ahead 3-2.

USM added three more runs in the sixth inning. Jack Minahan led off with a single. Jake Watton reached on a fielder’s choice that erased Minahan from the base paths. Agrawal was hit by a pitch. Pennington stroked a fly ball to left that dropped in for a single, driving in Ronnie Wynn who was running for Watton. Baker hit another double to drive in Agrawal and Pennington.

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Turner scratched out a run in the top of the seventh. With one out, Tanner Burt singled. Noack followed with another single that put Burt on second. Both runners advanced on a passed ball and Burt scored on a fielder’s choice when Metzger grounded to short.

USM’s starting pitcher, Nathan Burke, got the win; Turner’s starter Austin Andrews took the loss.  Baker was the leading hitter in the game going 2 for 4 with two doubles and 5 RBIs.

Game Two

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USM played its second game of the tournament immediately after its first against Medford.

USM took an early lead scoring a run in the first inning. The Wildcats’ lead off batter, Pennington walked. Stanford then singled. A wild pitch advanced the runners and then Baker walked to load the bases. Taylor Schaefer grounded into a double play, but Pennington scored on the play to give USM a one-run lead.

USM made it 2-0 in the second. Billy Lawton led off with a double and advanced to third on a ground out by Minahan. Watton and Agrawal then walked to load the bases. Pennington hit a single to left to drive in Lawton from third.

The Wildcats increased their lead in the top of the third. Schaefer led off with a single and Burke followed with a walk. A wild pitch advanced the runners to second and third. Lawton then doubled to deep center to score Schaefer and Burke. Greg Trinkl was put in as a courtesy runner for Lawton. Two successive pitches allowed Trinkl to score. Minahan singled, and Jack Wells went in as a courtesy runner for Minahan. Watton walked to send Wells to second. Agrawal laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance the runners. Two more pitches allowed Wells and Watton to score. By the end of the third, USM led 7-0.

Medford scored its first run when Ryan Paul reached on a walk and went to second on a wild pitch. Bryan Mezaros singled Paul home.

Medford scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth to make a close game. Taylor Reinhardt, the lead off batter in the inning was hit by a pitch. Jason Krueger reached on an error and Reinhardt took second. Isaac Klemm drove a hard line drive down the third-base line that Schaefer grabbed and then Schaefer tagged Reinhardt. Joey Kellnhofer singled, as did Paul. Mesaros reached on an error that allowed Klemm to score. Nick Roepke then doubled to score two more. By the end of the inning the score was 7-5.

USM made the score less burdensome in the top of the sixth. Stanford led off with a single and advanced to third when Baker reached safely on an error and advanced to second.  Schaefer singled to drive in Stanford and Baker, and made the score 9-5.

The Raiders got one more run in their last at bats. Cole Loertscher led off with a walk advanced to second on a ball and with one out, came home on a single by Reinhardt.

Pennington got this win in relief. Lawton was two for four with two doubles and two RBIs for USM, and Stanford was also two for four for the Wildcats.

Game Three - The Championship

Later on, USM entered the championship game against Mauston. Mauston started scoring by getting a runner across in the first. With one out, David Linsmeyer walked. Adam Ryan followed with a single. Lindsmeyer scored on a USM error.

USM went ahead 3-1 in the third. Schaefer led off with a single and went to second on a wild pitch. Burke walked. Burke was erased on a fielder’s choice that allowed Lawton to reach first and put Schaefer on third. Minahan walked and Duncan Brown ran for him. Patrick Lubar singled to drive in Schaefer. Agrawal singled to drive in Lawton, and a fielder’s choice on Pennington’s at bat gave USM its third run.

Mauston recaptured the lead with five runs in the third. Lindsmeyer walked to lead off the inning and stole second base. Kenny Waukau singled to drive in Lindsmeyer. Waukau stole second. Andy Thrams doubled to drive in Waukau from second. With two out, Zac Schroeder reached on an error. Ryan Miller doubled and reached third on an error in the outfield on the play. Brandon Nielsen singled, and Mauston had a 6-3 lead.

USM closed the gap in the fourth. With one out Lubar singled. Agrawal walked to put runners on first and second. Lubar went to third and Agrawal to second on a wild pitch. Pennington walked. Stanford hit a hard ground ball to short and reached on a fielder’s choice that allowed Lubar and Agrawal to score.

Mauston went ahead 7-5 with a run in the fifth. Schroeder led off and reached first on a wild pitch on a third strike. He advanced to second on a ground out and scored on a single by Brady Nelson.

Mauston got the winning run in the sixth when Waukau walked, advanced to second on a single by Thrams, went to third on an error and scored on a wild pitch.

USM was unable to tie it, but the Wildcats did score two runs in the sixth. Pennington walked and took second on Stanford’s single. A crazy pitch advanced both Wildcats, and Baker walked. Schaefer hit a sacrifice fly that scored Pennington and sent Stanford to third. Another wild pitch allowed Stanford to score. Two easy fly outs ended USM’s threat with Baker on third.

USM’s starter, Lubar, took the loss and Ryan received credit for the win. Lindsmeyer, Thrams, and Schroeder each went two for two for the Raiders. Lubar was three for three for the Wildcats.

Mauston is now 3-1.  USM is 4-1 and 2-0 in the Midwest Classic Conference South. The Wildcats play a conference game against Racine St. Catherine’s in Racine at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

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