Bulldog baseball starts season 1-1
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
The MFL MarMac baseball team started its season 1-1 last week, opening with a shutout victory over River Ridge before losing a high-scoring affair to Marion.
The Bulldogs defeated River Ridge 5-0 on May 19, behind a combined pitching effort that allowed just four hits.
Senior Kaden Stocker gave up three hits and one walk, and hit three batters, while striking out four over five innings. Carver Blietz-Bentien and Jacob Schellhorn pitched an inning apiece, with Blietz-Bentien fanning three Timberwolves and Schellhorn one.
MFL MarMac’s offense scored once in the first inning and again in the fourth before pushing across three runs in the bottom of the sixth. The team picked up six hits but also benefitted from seven free passes and 13 stolen bases.
Centerfielder Parker Kuehl accounted for two of the hits—a single and a double—and stole four bases and scored a run. Landon Johnson tallied a hit, drew a walk and was hit by a pitch. Like Kuehl, he was a perfect 4-4 on steal attempts, in addition to scoring twice. Austin Schlee singled and scored a run, while Schellhorn was 1-2 with a walk and two steals. Leadoff hitter Elias Hatt walked twice, stole a base and scored a run.
The momentum appeared to carry over into the May 20 game against Marion, as the Bulldogs took a 4-0 lead after four innings. A nine-run fifth inning, including a three-run blast, gave the Wolves a decisive advantage, though. They added two more in the top of the sixth before the Bulldogs narrowed the deficit to 11-7 in the bottom of the seventh.
MFL MarMac had nine hits in this match-up and continued to show patience at the plate with seven walks. Stocker and Chauncy Drahn were both 2-4, with a single and a double, and scored two runs. Drahn swiped three bags and also drove in a run. Johnson had a two-RBI double and walked twice, while Hatt singled twice and scored a run. Blietz-Bentien walked, knocked in a run and scored.
Ben Krambeer took the loss for the Bulldogs, surrendering five hits, four walks and five earned runs in four and one-third innings. He struck out four batters.
The Bulldogs play nearly every night this week, starting with games against North Tama and Columbus Catholic at Waterloo Riverfront Stadium on May 23. Then, it’s a double-header at Postville on May 24, followed by a home match-up against Starmont the following night. MFL MarMac will host a twin bill versus Kee on May 26.