Schulfer, Sullivan Combine for 17 Ks as Chinooks Finish Season with Extra-Innings Win
Northwoods Lakeshore Chinooks

Schulfer, Sullivan Combine for 17 Ks as Chinooks Finish Season with Extra-Innings Win

Published on August 9, 2025 under Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Lakeshore Chinooks News Release


FOND DU LAC, WI - Logan Schulfer and Michael Sullivan finished their baseball careers in the most unique fashion possible.

"No better way to do it," Schulfer said.

The pair of UW-Milwaukee redshirt seniors took the field for the final time as collegiate athletes in Fond du Lac on Saturday night. The two combined for 17 strikeouts and held the Dock Spiders to only six hits as the Chinooks ended their season with a 3-1 win in extra innings.

"They competed, they enjoyed it and had fun," manager Aidan Wojciehowski said about Schulfer and Sullivan. "They were able to focus on keeping it fun and enjoying their last ride."

In a world where the majority of athletes see their careers end in defeat, the duo of Panther arms join a special club.

"I told them after the game, to win your last baseball game is really special," Wojciehowski said after the game. "Not everybody gets to win that last ball game."

Schulfer got the start on the mound and set the table for Sullivan with 5.2 innings of work, picking up a season-best 11 strikeouts in the process.

Sullivan came in to relieve his partner in crime, completing the nine innings without allowing a run before eventually slamming the door in the 10th inning.

Above all else, Sullivan said playing together one final time was most important.

"It was really fun," he said. "Watching him throw the way he did and getting to come in and do my thing was really cool."

For both pitchers, it wasn't about the results. It was about each other.

"We've both been around each other a lot, and I know we both don't really care about the results," Schulfer said. "We're just going out here and giving our best intent in the moment...the fact that it came out the way it did shows that we deserve it."

The lone Fond du Lac run was scored in the bottom of the 10th by the ghost runner on second base, meaning Schulfer and Sullivan combined for no earned runs.

The Chinooks scored all three of their runs in the top of the same inning. Sam Meidenbauer dropped in a single to shallow right field, allowing the pinch running Arthur Liebau to score the first run of the game.

Then, up stepped Bubba Heidler, who despite having his fair share of frustration at the plate this season, delivered the big moment.

"With two strikes, I was looking for anything close," the Riverside CC shortstop said. "I saw a heater that I can elevate to drive in a run, and I got all of it."

Heidler delivered a bases-clearing 2-RBI triple to give Lakeshore the cushion they needed. The Menifee, Cal. native leaves the Northwoods League on a high note.

"He just keeps stacking a bunch of good days," Wojciehowski said. "To see him crack through was pretty sweet."

The offense got it done in the end, enough to send both of the night's pitchers off with a deserved win.

Both Schulfer and Sullivan look back on their baseball careers, and agree there's one thing that they will cherish forever- their time in the Northwoods League.

"I've played three seasons and it's the most fun you'll ever have," Schulfer said. "You get to play baseball with your best friends and see them for 10 hours every single day. It's the stuff you're going to remember for the rest of your life."

Sullivan thinks it's not just about baseball, but the relationships you build because of baseball.

"I'm going to remember a lot more hanging out and talking with Logan than I will remember of my individual pitches," he said.

Wojciehowski added that the relationships are what make every summer.

"The people you meet, the interns and all the operations guys and all the players that cycle through...those memories that you have are what you'll remember."

That's the beauty of the Northwoods League. Players and coaches from different backgrounds and varying experience levels come together every May to form a group of individuals.

After 72 games in 76 games together, they leave a family.

"The Northwoods is special," Wojciehowksi remarked. "It's a fraternity, it's a connection you'll have for the rest of your life."

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Northwoods League Stories from August 9, 2025


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