The Oconto Falls American Legion baseball team made a tough task more difficult with a rough start Sunday against Northern Division-leading Marinette.
Oconto Falls lost 12-2 in five innings after giving up six runs in the first inning at Memorial Field.
“We’re a team, especially when we’re playing a team as good as Marinette, we can’t afford to give up any mistakes,” Oconto Falls coach Chris Hillberg said. “We started a little slow on the mound, and then the fielding behind that followed through with it.”
Marinette (10-1) tacked on two more runs in the second inning, before Oconto Falls pulled pitcher Ethan Berth for Derek Zahn. Zahn allowed two runs before getting out of the inning.
“We need to be making plays to help our pitcher out a little bit,” Hillberg said. “I don’t think we should have given up 10 in the first two innings. But we didn’t come ready to play, apparently.”
Oconto Falls (6-4) went scoreless for three innings before finally getting on the board. In the fourth inning, Oconto Falls loaded the bases, helped by a Marinette error that allowed John Thompson to reach first. Then Jacob Mogged was hit by a pitch, and Tyler Magnin walked.
Two outs later, Matt Fournier singled to right field to score Thompson and Mogged.
Marinette got the two runs back in the top of the fifth. Up against the 10-run rule, Oconto Falls went three-up, three-down in the bottom of the fifth to end the game.
Fournier finished one for two with two RBIs. Thompson and Mogged both had hits.
Marinette was led by Beau DeLaet, who went two for two with three RBIs.
Zahn allowed three runs on five hits, walked two and struck out two. Berth allowed nine runs on three hits, walked seven and struck out one.
Marinette’s Jake McMahon struck out nine, walked one and allowed two runs on one hit in five innings of work.
“I believe he’s going to St. Norbert College, and there’s a reason why,” Hillberg said. “He’s tough. He was hitting his spots, he changed his speeds well. Had some pop in his fastball. Nice pitcher.”
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