The Hatchet baseball team grabbed a #1 seed for the playoffs after posting a solid regular season.
But the Hatchets’ playoff experience ended far too soon – in their first game after an opening-round bye – in Wednesday’s 7-5 home defeat to Medford.
“It was a frustrating night for the team,” THS coach Wes Roessler said. “We came out strong in the first inning and had the momentum. We made some mistakes in the top of the second which opened up a big inning for Medford.
We left the bases loaded in four different innings and had a total of 17 runners left on base. If we come up with one key hit in any of those innings, the outcome of the game is different.”
After Tomahawk put up a pair of runs in the first, Medford broke free for a five-run second.
Neither team scored until THS cut it to 5-3 in the sixth and tied it up with a pair in the bottom of the seventh.
“I was very proud the guys never gave up or lost focus the entire game,” Roessler said. “They were confident we were going to come back.
“We did tie the game in the bottom of the seventh, but just couldn’t close the deal.
Jared Jarvensivu scattered eight hits and allowed just four earned runs of the seven total.
“Jared pitched a very good game,” Roessler said. “It was just unfortunate that we allowed Medford a big inning.”
Jordan Roessler and Lorne Ahrens both had big days at the plate.
Fifth-seed Medford advanced to the game with a 10-0 victory over #4 N. Pines. Mosinee knocked Medford out 13-3 on Friday.
Medford– 050 000 02–7.
Tomahawk– 200 001 20–5.
TP: Jarvensivu (7-1/3 I, 8 H, 1 W, 4 K, 7 R, 4 ER. TH: 9 H; Roessler 3-5, 2-2B; Ahrens 2-3, 2B, 2 W, 2 SB.
Tomahawk closed out a 10-7 season with the loss. THS tied for second in the GNC with Mosinee at 7-5.
“The season was somewhat of a roller coaster for us,” Roessler said. “We surprised some teams with upset wins, but also lost some games in late innings. The guys never really got frustrated or discouraged. They just kept working on getting better. They had to battle through the loss of some key players to injury but we had other guys step up.
“It was a great group of guys to be around and there were lots of laughs had in the dugout.
“This is a great group of seniors that will be missed immensely. They are great leaders, teammates, and role models for younger players. Their leadership and hustle will be tough to replace. I wish them well in their future endeavors. I am confident they will be successful in whatever they choose to do.”