This story is sponsored by Total Electric
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
SHEBOYGAN – The magical postseason run by the Marshfield Post 54 Legion baseball team came to an end Saturday afternoon as the Blue Devils lost to Eau Claire 11-7 in an elimination game at the Wisconsin Class AAA American Legion Baseball State Tournament at Wildwood Park.
Marshfield, which won the regional title last weekend in Wausau, lost to Eau Claire in its opening game at the state tournament on Tuesday before ripping off three-straight wins to move one win away from a berth in the state championship game and a Great Lakes regional slot, but fell short as Eau Claire used a six-run second inning to take control.
Manitowoc (27-5) defeated Eau Claire (23-15) 6-3 to claim the program’s first state championship. Both teams will move on to the Great Lakes Regional at Midland, Mich., on Aug. 3-7. The two Wisconsin teams will join the top two teams from the Illinois state tournament, along with state champions from Indiana, Michigan and Ohio, and host Midland Post 165. The regional winner moves on to the American Legion World Series in Shelby, N.C. on Aug. 11-16.
Marshfield finishes its season 25-15.
“Today, we just lost to a good team,” Marshfield coach Josh Metz said. “I’m so happy with this group of guys here. What a season they had. There were so many memorable games and it was incredible run by us. Disappointed we didn’t get it done today, but it was a great season.”
Marshfield starter Braeden Schueller worked out of a jam in the first inning allowing just one run after three of the first five batters reached. He picked off a runner from first to end the inning.
However, Eau Claire wasn’t as forgiving in the second as six-straight baserunners reached with two outs, three on walks and another on a hit batter. Jackson Ormond relieved Schueller and walked in a run before allowing two singles that pushed Eau Claire’s lead to 7-0.
Riley Bauman came in to get the final out and ended up pitching 4 1/3 innings of relief, giving up four runs with six walks.
“Unfortunately, it just got away from us too quickly,” Metz said. “We got the first two outs. We were a called strike away from getting out of it – I thought there were one or two that were pretty questionable that we just didn’t get – and it unraveled. I wanted to go to Riley, but didn’t have a chance to get him to warm up (he started in right field). The hope was to get him back in dugout maybe down one or two, get him warmed up and out there in the third, it just got away from us.”
Marshfield trailed 8-0 before finally getting its offense going in the fourth against Eau Claire starter Andrew Milner.
Nick Urban doubled and scored on a single by Ben Dietsche, Carsten Jirschele walked and Kale Weisenenberger delivered an RBI single. After another walk, Brock Bennington was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make it 8-3.
Eau Claire quickly responded with three runs in the fifth.
Down to its final at-bat in the bottom of the seventh, the Blue Devils looked to make one more miraculous comeback, as it had done numerous times this season.
Bennett Lang led off with a double and Bennington was beaned again. After a foul-out, Bauman smacked a single to score Lang, and when the centerfielder misplayed the ball, Bennington scored as well, with Bauman going all the way to third.
Urban walked, Cole Timmler nailed an RBI single and Dietsche had an RBI groundout to make it 11-7 before Jirschele lined out to end the game.
“This team’s done it all year and they’ve never quit,” Metz said. “We had that three-run inning where I thought if we could throw up a zero after that, their pitcher was clearly tiring, we had a shot. But that’s a good team over there, when they need hits, they tend to get them.”
Eau Claire 11, Marshfield 7
Eau Claire 160 130 0 – 11 9 3
Marshfield 000 300 4 – 7 7 2
WP: Andrew Milner. LP: Braeden Schueller.
SO: Schueller (1 2/3 inn.) 0, Jackson Ormond (0 inn.) 0, Riley Bauman (4 1/3 inn.) 0, Carsten Jirschele (1 inn.) 1; Milner (6 1/3 inn.) 4, Grant Sauerman (2/3 inn.) 0. BB: Schueller 5, Ormond 1, Bauman 6, Jirschele 0; Milner 2, Sauerman 1.
Top hitters: EC, Luke Erickson 1×4, 2 runs, RBI; Jackson Kein 1×2, 2 runs, RBI; Dylan O’Connell 2 runs; Gabe Richardson 2 runs; Samuel Feck 1×2, run, 2 RBI; Jonah Hanson 1×4, 3 RBI; Mason Kostka 2×5, 2B, run, RBI. M, Brock Bennington 2 HBP, run, RBI; Bauman 1×4, runs, RBI; Nick Urban 2B, 2 runs; Cole Timmler 1×4, RBI; Ben Dietsche 1×4, run, 2 RBI; Jirschele 1×3, run; Kale Weisenberger 1×3, RBI; Bennett Lang 2B, run.
Records: Eau Claire 23-14; Marshfield 25-15.
Wisconsin Class AAA American Legion Baseball State Tournament
July 26-30, at Wildwood Park, Sheboygan
Double Elimination
Tuesday, July 26
Game 1: Manitowoc (23-4) 3, Middleton (13-14) 2
Game 2: De Pere (23-12) 2, Fond du Lac (15-8) 1
Game 3: Eau Claire (20-13) 14, Marshfield (22-14) 3
Game 4: Sheboygan (16-14) 5, Genoa City (12-18) 2
Wednesday, July 27
Game 5: Middleton (14-14) 10, Fond du Lac (15-9) 9
Game 6: Marshfield (23-14) 6, Genoa City (12-19) 5 (9 inn.)
Game 7: Manitowoc (24-4) 5, De Pere (23-13) 3
Game 8: Sheboygan (17-14) 5, Eau Claire (20-14) 4
Thursday, July 28
Game 9: Marshfield (24-14) 7, De Pere (23-14) 4
Game 10: Eau Claire (21-14) 15, Middleton (14-15) 9
Game 11: Manitowoc (25-4) 5, Sheboygan (17-15) 1
Friday, July 29
Game 12: Marshfield (25-14) 8, Sheboygan (17-16) 1
Game 13: Eau Claire (22-14) 10, Manitowoc (26-5) 0
Saturday, July 30
Game 14: Eau Claire (23-14) 11, Marshfield (25-15) 7
Game 15: Manitowoc (27-5) 6, Eau Claire (23-15) 3