Growlers Fall in Possible Playoff Clincher
Northwoods Kalamazoo Growlers

Growlers Fall in Possible Playoff Clincher

Published on August 7, 2025 under Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Kalamazoo Growlers News Release


KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Kalamazoo Growlers (36-34; 19-16) fell 12-10 in a roller-coaster ballgame against the Royal Oak Leprechauns (35-35; 18-16) in a game that saw 31 total hits on Thursday night.

The first inning continued to be dominated by Royal Oak, scoring two off four hits before leaving the bases loaded against Kalamazoo starter Brendan Burch. Unlike previous games, the Growlers were unable to answer, going scoreless against Leprechaun's starter Jovan Gill. Burch would struggle again in the second, allowing a leadoff homer off the foul pole to Aidan Schuck, before Kalamazoo would move within two in the bottom of the second, with Matthew Thompson scoring on a JD Crisp RBI groundout.

The Leprechauns would tee off Burch in the third, scoring five runs, including Schuck leaving the yard for the second time for a grand slam. Burch would end his day with just 2.1 innings of eight run ball, and an 8-1 deficit. The fourth inning would see Royal Oak score two off Hudson Lubbers extending their lead to 10-1. Gage Vota would pitch a scoreless fifth, sixth, and seventh for Kalamazoo, while Jovan Gill would end his day for the Leprechauns with five innings of one run ball. One run in the Kalamazoo half of the sixth and the scoreless top of the seventh would lead into the chaos.

The bottom of the seventh would see the Growlers send 11 batters to the dish, including a Matthew Thompson bases clearing triple to move Kalamazoo within two runs. The Growlers would amass three hits, five free passes, and face three pitchers in the long inning. Donny Tober would come out of the Growler 'pen in a suddenly competitive 10-8 game, and would allow three hits with two runs coming across, moving the advantage for the Leprechauns 12-8.

Kalamazoo would ride three errors en route to gaining the runs back, taking a 12-10 game into the ninth. Tober would allow a single with two outs, but escape unscathed, before Nick Brady, would exit for his third inning of work and sit Kalamazoo down 1-2-3, with some help from a diving catch by Preston Leon to end the ballgame.

The Royal Oak win extends the Leprechauns season at least one more day, as they require one more win than Kalamazoo over the final two games of the season. The Growlers will face Battle Creek at home, while the Leprechauns will face the first half champion Traverse City Pit Spitters.

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