Raiders rally to win unexpected slugfest, 12-9

WIAA DIV. 2 BASEBALL

A five-run lead disappeared, uncharacteristic defensive miscues popped up and the team’s top two pitchers got knocked around –– things that have not happened to the Medford Raiders much, if at all, this baseball season.

But, teammates picked each other up and that may have been the most important reason the Raiders fought back from a 9-6 fourth-inning deficit to defeat Merrill 12-9 in Tuesday’s WIAA Division 2 regional semifinal at Raider Field.

“Once that happens you have to pick up your teammates,” senior co-captain Blaine Seidl said. “They may have made a mistake or two. It doesn’t really matter. You have to find ways to help your pitcher. I think we just didn’t give up the whole game.”

The win sent Medford (22-3) to a mustsee regional final against Bloomer (22-2) Wednesday at Raider Field, which took place after this week’s deadline for The Star News. After losing their first two games of the year, the regional’s second-seeded Blackhawks brought a 22-game winning streak into Wednesday’s contest.

“Wow, What a great game,” Medford head coach Justin Hraby said. “I am so proud at how the boys battled back. After taking an early lead and then being down three, we never gave up.”

Merrill scored all nine of its runs in the third and fourth innings and seemingly had all the momentum. That was until Hraby turned to sophomore Logan Baumgartner to stop the bleeding. He took the ball and pitched 3.2 scoreless innings to pick up an impressive relief win. Baumgartner gave up just one hit and struck out two batters. He hit two and walked one. With Merrill having already scored five runs in the fourth with two runners still in scoring position, Baumgartner got two huge outs to end that threat and restore order to a nervous dugout.

“We were definitely nervous,” junior catcher Aiden Gardner said. “We know we can come back, but I don’t know. I think nerves got through us.”

“I’m always ready for whenever coach calls my name,” Baumgartner said. “When I get on the mound, I’m just going to do what I do. Hopefully the outcome turns out the way we want it.”

From Seidl’s view in centerfield and Gardner’s view behind the plate, Baumgartner’s success simply came from locating his pitches where he wanted them.

“Logan Baumgartner was huge with three-plus shutdown innings, giving us a chance to come back and then preserving the lead,” Hraby said. “He was big time for us. He also did it with the bat pounding out three hits.”

With Merrill’s bats quieted, Medford’s offense needed a jolt and that came in the bottom of the fifth when Seidl hit Zach Kriegel’s first pitch over the leftfi eld fence, sparking the winning six-run rally.

“I’ve had a lot of one-pitch at-bats this year,” Seidl said. “I don’t like to get behind in the count and I like to put the ball in play as soon as I can. It was a fastball, a little low, but still very hittable and I hit it.

“We knew that was the start of something that was going to be good,” Baumgartner said.

Baumgarter followed Seidl’s homer with a base hit, knocking Kriegel out of the game. Nate Retterath greeted reliever Henry Reimann with an infield single, but he was eliminated at second on Seth Mudgett’s fielder’s choice. Tanner Hraby lined a single to right that scored Baumgartner and Caleb Guden walked to load the bases, but Spike Alexander’s liner to left was caught, leaving it up to Gardner to keep the rally going as the Raiders still trailed by one.

After not making solid contact in his first three at-bats, Gardner’s bouncer got through the right side, scoring two to put Medford ahead for good. Brigham Kelley hit another two-run single to left to cap the big inning.

“I was really nervous because all year I’ve been pretty good on not sitting on high pitches,” Gardner said. “I was just thinking he was going to throw me a high pitch. But he put it right there. I knew I should probably try to push it to rightfield. It just felt so good off the bat.”

“Two-out hitting wins games,” Seidl said.

Through two innings, there was no sign Medford was going to need a comeback. Alexander mowed down the first six Blue Jays he faced and he hit a firstinning sacrifice fly. In the bottom of the second, Kelley singled to left, the Blue Jays dropped what would have been a force at second on Seidl’s grounder and Baumgartner’s perfect bunt, after Merrill dropped a foul pop-up, went for a hit to load the bases with no outs. Retterath hit a sacrifice fly, Mudgett singled right over first base to score one, Hraby singled in another and Alexander added his second sacrifice fly for a 5-0 lead.

Merrill’s Connor Cortright led off the third with a double to deep right and suddenly, the game changed. One hit, two wild pitches, one walk and three errors later, it was 5-4. Baumgartner singled in a run in the bottom half, but Merrill’s surge continued in the top of the fourth. Nathan Brzoznowski and Michael McRae walked, ending Alexander’s start. Guden took over, but only recorded one out as Isaac Sutton singled in a run, Caleb DeJong walked, Peyton Becker hit a sacrifice fly, Alex Mann singled in the go-ahead run and Mason Johnson rapped a two-run single.

Medford banged out 16 hits. Baumgartner was three for four, Hraby was three for five and Mudgett, Gardner, Kelley, Seidel and Retterath all had two hits apiece.

“The bats were there when we needed them,” Justin Hraby said. “We pounded out 16 hits and didn’t strike out. Seven guys had multiple hits for us. That’s what you need to do when pitching and defense struggle.”

The winner of Wednesday’s game advances to the sectional tournament in Rice Lake on Tuesday. The Bloomer/ Medford winner is slated to play in the 1 p.m. semifinal. The championship game is set for 4 p.m.

Medford 5, Edgar 2

A five-run third-inning rally was all the offense Medford needed Thursday to wrap up the regular season with a 5-2 win over visiting Edgar in a non-conference matchup between area conference champions.

“It was good to play a quality opponent and not have a week off before playoffs,” Hraby said.

The decisive rally actually started with two outs and nobody on. Guden drew a walk from Edgar lefty Konnor Wolf and hustled all the way to third when the Wildcats misplayed Alexander’s bouncer to the right side. Guden scored the game’s first run on a wild pitch.

After hearing it from Edgar’s dugout on two big swings and misses, Gardner had the last laugh on his third swing, crushing a ball to deep center that drove in Alexander and went for a triple. Gardner was awarded home plate when the relay throw went into Medford’s dugout.

Kelley singled to left and scored when Seidl launched a towering homer over the fence in left-center.

Guden and Alexander each pitched three shutout innings. Alexander did not allow a hit in his three relief innings. With dark storm clouds bearing down on Raider Field, Baumgartner got through the seventh inning to finish things off, though the Wildcats did get on the board on hits by Kaden Goodwin and Brayden Baumgartner, a run-scoring groundout by Kyle Brewster and a passed ball.

Medford outhit the Wildcats 8-5. Gardner and Mudgett had two hits apiece.

Alexander struck out three Wildcats in his three relief innings and worked around two walks in the fourth. Wolf took the loss in a five-inning start for the Wildcats, who shared the Marawood South title with Stratford and fell to 153. He struck out five Raiders. Brewster pitched a scoreless sixth, aided by a double play turned by the Edgar defense off a lineout by Guden.

With 3.2 scoreless, one-hit relief innings, Logan Baumgartner stopped Merrill’s momentum Tuesday and allowed Medford to rally for a 12-9 regional semifinal win.MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS

Medford Area Little League Association’s seventh grade Bronco baseball team and 8U/10U softball teams accept a $500 donation from Wheelers Chevrolet. Wheelers Chevrolet supports MALLA each year. The funds allow MALLA to upgrade a variety of equipment each season.KARLA KLAPATAUSKAS PHOTO