For the City Times

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – A day after Jacob Hinderleider (Davidson) drove in five runs, he scampered home on a passed ball in the 12th inning, winning the Rafters’ home opener, 4-3.

Glenn Albanese (Louisville) started for the Rafters and was brilliant, striking out the first four Booyah batters he faced. Albanese would pitch four innings from the Witter Field rubber, striking out 11 batters. Versus Albanese, only two Green Bay batters put the ball in play.

After Albanese’s exit, Ryan Mitschele (W. Carolina) took over and was similarly suave in moving through the lineup. Mitschele threw three hitless and scoreless innings, allowing only two base runners to the Booyah.

On the hitting side, the Rafters got on the board in the third. Rafters 2019 All-Star catcher Jake Dunham (Northern Illinois) drove in Richie Schiekofer (Rutgers) to make the score 1-0. The Booyah and Rafters would trade zeroes for four innings to follow. After the Booyah tied the game up in the eighth, the game stayed scoreless until the tenth.

With extra inning rules allowing a runner to start at second, the Rafters traded runs in the 11th, with the Rafters scoring one on an Andy Garriola (Old Dominion) double. In the 12th, the Booyah struck first again, but the Rafters were not done.

Jacob Hinderleider singled, sending Roman Trujillo to third. Jake Dunham then tied the game with an RBI single. Two batters later, with Christian Sepulveda (UTRGV) at the plate, a pitch went through the legs of Booyah catcher Cameron Tilly, and Hinderleider took advantage, scoring to win the game.

The Rafters are on the road July 3, against the Wisconsin Woodchucks.