Woodchucks Fall Just Short in Tight Battle in Green Bay
Northwoods Wausau Woodchucks

Woodchucks Fall Just Short in Tight Battle in Green Bay

July 5, 2025 - Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Wausau Woodchucks News Release


GREEN BAY, WI - Following a dramatic Fourth of July victory, the Woodchucks found themselves on the other side of a close finish the next day.

The Green Bay Rockers came from behind late to take down the Woodchucks, 6-5 at Capital Credit Union Park on Saturday afternoon. It's just the second loss for the Woodchucks in their last seven games.

The game remained close all afternoon, and it was the Rockers who jumped ahead early with a three-run second inning. Wausau got on the board in the following frame, with Dylan Schlotterback (Paris JC/Kansas) smoking an RBI double into center field to make it 3-1. Schlotterback moved into first place in the Great Lakes Division for RBIs, with his 35th of the season.

Neither team would score again until the sixth, when Wausau pulled together a two-out rally to go in front. Jake Berkland (Minnesota State-Mankato) drilled a double down the right field line to score two runs, his first extra base hit of the season.

On the very next pitch, Fourth of July hero Christian Smith-Johnson (Texas A&M-CC) brought Berkland in on an RBI single. The go-ahead hit helped Smith-Johnson continue his amazing season with the Woodchucks, as he now has a base hit in 27 of the 30 games he's played in this year.

The Woodchucks got some breathing room in the eighth, thanks to Max Galvin (Miami), who crushed a ball off the scoreboard in right field. It was his second homer this year- and yet another against the Rockers, bringing his career total to six against Green Bay.

However, the Rockers tapped into some late magic, scoring three runs in the bottom of the eighth to pull ahead for good. The Woodchucks mounted a last-second rally, getting the tying run to third base in the ninth, but came up just short.

Despite the loss, Wausau still had some standout performers. Brayden Mazzacano (Illinois) delivered one of his strongest appearances on the mound this summer. The freshman left-hander delivered three scoreless innings to keep the Woodchucks within reach, highlighted by a big escape out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the fifth. Dom Rodriguez (Arizona) finished 3-5, notching his third three-hit game of the 2025 season.

The tight defeat continued Wausau's stretch of playing in close games. Seven of the Woodchucks' last 10 games have been decided by one run, and Wausau is 4-3 in those games. Tonight's loss snapped a stretch where Wausau had won three consecutive games by that margin.

Wausau drops to 24-16 overall, and 3-2 in the second half. In addition, Wausau is now just one game under .500 on the road this season, with a 10-11 record.

Wausau will look for revenge tomorrow afternoon when they travel back to Ashwaubenon to finish their two-game set against the Green Bay Rockers. First pitch from Capital Credit Union Field is at 1:05 p.m., and the game is set to be broadcast exclusively on ESPN+.

The Woodchuck's next home game is on Tuesday night, July 8, when they host the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters at 6:35 p.m. That will begin a stretch where Wausau plays four home games in a three-day stretch. Fans can purchase tickets to those games and every single home game in the second half of the Woodchucks' 2025 season by visiting woodchucks.com.



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