Bulldogs’ postseason aspirations cut short with loss to Denver
Elias Hatt accounted for two of MFL MarMac’s seven hits in the July 9 loss to Denver. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
Jacob Schellhorn tossed three scoreless innings versus the Cyclones.
Ben Krambeer makes contact with a pitch in last week's playoff loss to Denver.
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
The MFL MarMac baseball team’s playoff run came to an abrupt end July 9, in a 3-2 upset loss to Denver in the Class 2A Substate 3 quarterfinal in Monona.
At 23-7, the Bulldogs came in as the top seed in the district, while the Cyclones had won just five games all season.
Denver struck first with a run in the top of the first inning, and eventually built a 3-0 advantage with additional runs in the third and fourth. The Bulldogs cut the margin to 3-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning, when Brayden Gordon plated Carver Blietz-Bentien on an RBI-double, then scored on a hit by Jaxon Millage.
MFL MarMac out-hit Denver seven to four and reached base eight more times on a combination of walks, hit by pitches and errors, but struggled to capitalize with runners on base. Denver meanwhile, benefitted from some Bulldog fielding miscues and earned one run on a sacrifice fly.
Along with Gordon and Millage, Elias Hatt accounted for two of MFL MarMac’s hits, and Parker Kuehl, Ben Krambeer and Dustin Larson each had one.
The loss went to Kuehl, who surrendered three hits, two walks, a hit batter and three runs—two of them earned—in four innings. He tallied seven strikeouts. Jacob Schellhorn worked the final three frames, allowing just one hit while striking out five batters.
Cyclone freshman Lincoln Roethler kept the Bulldogs off balance over four and two-thirds innings, giving up six hits, two walks, two hit batters and two runs, but striking out seven for the win.
MFL MarMac finished the season 23-8 overall and 15-3 in the Upper Iowa Conference, behind only South Winneshiek. The team will lose four seniors—Blietz-Bentien and Hatt as well as infielder Bryce Radloff and pitcher Nick Krambeer—but should return a core group of juniors, including Gordon, Millage, Kuehl, Schellhorn, Larson, Ben Krambeer, Jaron Wille and Kade Humble.
