One win from a title

MEDFORD BASEBALL

Victory at Antigo already puts Raiders on the cusp in GNC

The Medford Raiders began the year expecting to contend for a second straight Great Northern Conference championship. They just didn’t expect to have the chance to win it this soon.

With a 7-0 win at Antigo Monday, the Raiders moved to 9-0 in the GNC and can clinch the outright title today, Thursday, with another over the Red Robins during Youth Night festivities in a 5 p.m. game at Raider Field. Antigo was upset 5-1 by Lakeland Friday and sits at 5-2 in league play, while Mosinee, who the Raiders still have two games against, is still in contention for a title share at 4-3.

Monday’s win was Medford’s first in Antigo since 2012 and it came in the teams’ first meeting since Antigo upset Medford in the 2019 WIAA Division 2 regional final and went on to win the state championship. Spike Alexander pitched a three-hit shutout, striking out nine and walking only two. The offense gave him plenty of cushion by scoring all of its runs in the first five innings.

“This was a big win for us,” Medford head coach Justin Hraby said. “2019 left a sour taste in our mouth. Beating them surely makes that feel a little bit better. We now have a chance to clinch on Thursday at home. We couldn’t ask for much more than that.”

Alexander’s RBI single drove in Caleb Guden to get the scoring started in the top of the first. Guden and Tanner Hraby singled to start the third. Blaine Seidl loaded the bases with a one-out infield hit. Brigham Kelley walked to force in a run and Nate Retterath slapped a tworun single. Aiden Gardner’s single reloaded the bases and Logan Baumgartner grounded out to drive in a run and give Medford a 5-0 lead.

In the fifth, Retterath tripled and scored on Gardner’s groundout. Seth Mudgett reached on an infield hit and eventually scored on a wild pitch and throwing error.

“Clutch hitting in key moments continues to be what our offense is all about,” coach Hraby said. “We are not going to put up 15 or 20 runs a lot, but we are going to manufacture runs here and there to the point where we all of a sudden have six or seven runs.”

Medford had 13 hits in the win. Guden and Gardner both went three for four. Retterath and Hraby both were two for four.

Austin Schedlbauer took the loss for Antigo, allowing 12 of the hits and all seven runs while striking out five and walking one in five innings. Alexander threw 63 of his 93 pitches for strikes and threw first-pitch strikes to 15 of the 27 batters he faced.

“Spike was a man on a mission,” Hraby said. “He was in command of his pitches and was tough. It is fun to watch him pitch when he is hitting his spots.”

After tonight’s matchup with the Red Robins, Medford will go through a Wisconsin Valley gauntlet. The Raiders have a 4 p.m. doubleheader in Stevens Point on Friday, host Wisconsin Rapids at 5 p.m. on Monday and visit D.C. Everest at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. A solid Ashland team visits Raider Field on May 27.

“We look forward to Thursday night with an opportunity to clinch the conference title with two weeks left,” Justin Hraby said. “The boys have been all business the past two weeks. I don’t expect anything different Thursday.”

Medford 11, East 1

A day after the win in Antigo, Medstruck ford used an eight-run inning to bury host Wausau East 11-1 in non-conference play.

The Raiders took a 3-0 lead in the third. Emett Grunwald singled and scored on Guden’s double. Tanner Hraby singled and stole second, Alexander walked to load the bases and Gardner drove in two with a double.

The big fourth inning started with a Baumgartner double. He scored two wild pitches later. Mudgett walked, Grunwald was hit by a pitch and Guden singled to load them up for Hraby, who walked. Alexander, Seidl and Gardner also drove in runs with walks. Retterath’s sacrifice fly scored Alexander. Baumgartner hit a sacrifice fly too and Mudgett capped it with an RBI double to make it 11-0.

East got a run in the fourth. A diving catch in centerfield by Retterath helped keep the 10-run lead intact in the fifth.

Mudgett allowed just two hits, an unearned run and one walk while striking out two in four innings. Kelley pitched the fifth, striking out one and walking one.

“Seth was very efficient,” coach Hraby said. “He pounded the zone, kept his pitch count low and forced a lot of balls in play that gave our defense a chance to work. All three of our outfielders were solid. Two diving catches and a catch on a long run kept some balls from being hits.”

Guden was two for four. Medford only had seven hits but took advantage of six walks issued by East’s Matt Heinrich and Isaac Coushman.

“Our hitting wasn’t spectacular, but we took what they gave us,” Hraby said. “We were patient, didn’t swing at bad pitches and took advantage of their second and third pitchers.”

The win put Medford at 14-2 overall. The Raiders moved up to fourth in this week’s Division 2 state rankings.

Raiders 14, Hatchets 4

Medford jumped ahead 9-0 after an inning and a half, which gave it more than enough cushion to soften a one-inning rally by host Tomahawk in a 14-4, fiveinning Friday.

“It was good to see us get off to a good start and put up two runs right away,” Justin Hraby said. “The second-inning output was nice as well. We just kept putting the pressure on, scoring in each of the first four innings.”

Medford had 13 hits, with three coming from Guden and Seidl adding two. Tanner Hraby had a season-high four RBIs in the win.

Guden allowed four hits, struck out four and walked two in four innings. One of Tomahawk’s four second-inning runs was earned. Hraby allowed a hit in the fifth.

A run-scoring double steal and Seidl’s RBI single put Medford up 2-0 in the first. The big seven-run second started with a walk to Gardner, Baumgartner reaching on an error and Grunwald walking to load the bases with no outs. Guden doubled to drive in a pair and Grunwald scored on a wild pitch. Hraby’s single scored Guden for a 6-0 lead. Alexander and Seidl singled to re-load the bases. Hraby was forced at home on Kelley’s fielder’s choice, but Retterath came through with a two-run single and Gardner added a sacrifice fly.

“All of our starters hit the ball well,” coach Hraby said. “Joe Gierl also had a hard-hit single off the bench too. We hit the ball hard in two games against Tomahawk, all while only striking out one time.”

Two errors aided Tomahawk’s rally in the bottom of the second. Isaiah Scheffl er’s two-run single was the big hit.

Medford answered with three in the top of the third, aided by a couple of Hatchet miscues. Baumgartner doubled and Grunwald walked to lead off the fourth. After a Guden groundout, Baumgartner scored on a wild pitch and Hraby’s sacrifice fly scored Grunwald.

Scheffler was the losing pitcher, allowing all 14 runs, 10 of which were earned, and 11 hits in three innings.