RIB LAKE BASEBALL - Redmen get first key North matchup

RIB LAKE BASEBALL

A small bunt hit led to a big sixth inning that gave the Rib Lake baseball team a big 6-4 win over Abbotsford-Colby Tuesday in the first of two meetings this week with the two-time defending Marawood North champions.

In a 4-4 tie, Donovan Sutherland, a first-year senior who had run track in the spring in previous years, led off the bottom of the sixth with a bunt that was thrown away by the Abbotsford-Colby infield, putting him at second base. He wound up scoring the go-ahead two batters later and the Redmen survived a bases-loaded threat by the Falcons in the seventh to stay unbeaten at 9-0 overall and 5-0 in the Marawood North.

Rib Lake handed Abbotsford-Colby its first conference loss in nearly two years and took a one-game lead over the 4-1 Falcons going into the rematch in Abbotsford today, Thursday at 4:45 p.m. Phillips also entered Tuesday 4-0 in league play but lost 10-6 to Athens. Those two teams also play today.

“We’re playing good ball,” Rib Lake head coach Dick Iverson. “Knock on wood, we have to keep it going.”

Rib Lake and Abbotsford-Colby traded two-run rallies in the first and third innings and waited out about a 15-minute weather delay in the fifth inning before getting to the decisive bottom of the sixth.

Sutherland, whose speed is an asset Rib Lake has certainly tried to use in the first half of the season, pushed his bunt to the left side and sped down the line, forcing the errant throw that went into shallow rightfield.

“I was obviously struggling with my hitting earlier in the game,” Sutherland said. “Coach just said ‘hey, go lay down a bunt.’ I laid that down and I ran. I was gone. I didn’t really look because I was focused on the base, but it felt like a pretty nice bunt.”

Talon Scheithauer followed with a base hit and wiggled his way out of a rundown getting to second base to set the table for Andrew Wudi, who hit a sharp grounder to shortstop JV Castillo. Sutherland beat the throw home, sliding around the attempted tag from catcher Blake Bargender. “Basically I saw the ball get hit,” Sutherland said. “Coach said ‘go, go, go’ so I went and then with the throw I saw (Bargender’s) glove go out. He pulled it way outside, so I slid inside and was too late coming across the body.”

Scheithauer wound up scoring a big insurance run on Brady Heiser’s two-out single, though Wudi was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.

Jackson Blomberg was at 94 pitches to start the top of the seventh and sandwiched two quick outs around a Bargender single before reaching his 100-pitch limit.

Scheithauer relieved him and got a scare when Abbotsford-Colby Carlos Lara yanked a shot that, for a moment, seemed headed for the leftfield fair pole, but it fell short and hooked foul.

“As soon as I saw the curve on it, I said thank God,” said Wudi who was playing third base at the time.

Lara eventually singled and Evan Reis walked to load them up, but Scheithauer buckled down and struck out Nano Lopez to end it.

“I was trying to feed the zone, not walk people even though I did walk one,” Scheithauer said. “But it was just about filling the zone, trusting my guys and getting that last out. It was definitely big only having to get that one out too with Jackson getting two outs.”

Lara did hit an RBI double to the gap in left-center to get the scoring started in the first inning and Reis hit a sacrifice fly. Rib Lake countered with Scheithauer getting a leadoff infield hit and Wudi getting hit by pitch to start the bottom of the first. Blomberg’s grounder moved the runners 90 feet and Ethan Cook dumped a single into shallow right for a run batted in. Wudi beat the throw home on Dominic Quednow’s ground ball to tie it.

The Falcons scored two unearned runs in the top of the third, but Blomberg and Cook singled to start the bottom half. Quednow singled in Blomberg and Heiser singled in Cook to tie it and knock Abbotsford-Colby starter JV Castillo from his pitching duties after just 49 pitches. That gives Castillo the chance to pitch again today.

Rib Lake had six hits off the Falcons’ ace in two-plus innings. Payton Schreiber went the rest of the way and took the loss.

“We just said put the fastball into right and just adjust off-speed,” Blomberg said.

Blomberg struck out six, walked five and hit one while allowing just three hits in his 6.2 innings.

The win was Rib Lake’s second in as many days over a quality opponent. The Redmen beat 6-0 Columbus Catholic Monday and found themselves ranked eighth in the first in-season Division 4 state rankings, which were released Tuesday.

“I think just the biggest thing is momentum, just building the momentum by beating these good teams,” Scheithauer said.

“It’s one game at a time, but we have big goals,” Blomberg said. “It’s the same thing as we said in basketball, respect everyone but fear no one.”

Rib Lake’s challenging week continues Friday when it hosts Auburndale at 4:45 p.m. in a Marawood crossover. The Redmen go to Northland Pines Monday before returning to league play against the other contender Phillips. Rib Lake visits the Loggers Tuesday and hosts them May 2.

Redmen 6, Dons 1

Seth Borchardt was three for three and pitched 3.1 scoreless relief innings, while Wudi broke the game open with a tworun single as Rib Lake won a battle between unbeatens Monday 6-1 at Columbus Catholic.

A four-run sixth inning broke open a tense 2-1 game, playing in rain and wind at Marshfield’s Jack Hackman Field. The end was still tense as Columbus Catholic stranded two runners in the sixth and left the bases loaded in the seventh while falling to 6-1.

Rib Lake moved to 8-0 as Quednow and Borchardt continually got out of jams. Columbus Catholic left 12 runners on base.

Quednow walked the first three batters he faced in a rare pitching start for the senior lefty. He got out of that first-inning with minimal damage –– Cy Becker’s sacrifice fly –– and finished with two hits, four walks and one earned run allowed. He struck out three. Borchardt walked four, hit a batter and allowed two hits but he struck out five to pick up the lengthy save.

Rib Lake had eight hits off Columbus pitchers Blake Jakobi and Devlin Timmler, including two by Wudi and one apiece for Cook, Tyler Matyka and Scheithauer.

Rib Lake tied the game at 1-1 in the top of the second as Quednow walked, Borchardt bunted for a hit and Quednow eventually scored on a passed ball. Scheithauer and Wudi singled to lead off the fourth and Blomberg walked to load the bases with no outs. Cook hit a fly ball to shallow rightfield that was caught by second baseman Carson Eckes. He stumbled on the catch and Scheithauer scored the go-ahead run.

Quednow reached on an error to start the big sixth-inning rally. He was bunted to second by Brady Heiser and scored on Borchardt’s single to left. Matyka singled and later took second on a wild pitch. Scheithauer walked to load the bases for Wudi, who smacked a single to left to plate a pair of runs. Scheithauer scored the final run on a wild pitch.

A single and two walks loaded the bases with two outs for Columbus in the seventh, but Borchardt struck out Eckes to end the threat and the game.

Rib Lake third baseman Andrew Wudi fields a ground ball hit by Abbotsford-Colby’s Nano Lope and throws him out to open the sixth inning Tuesday afternoon. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS