Deerfield baseball defeated in regional semifinal by Marshall

For most of the game, the Marshall Cardinals were no match for Deerfield senior pitcher Adam Suess.

However, the fifth and seventh innings were when the Cardinals struck.

Marshall scored twice in the fifth and added three runs in the seventh to earn a 5-2 win over the Deerfield baseball team on Wednesday, May 29 at Deerfield High School in the WIAA regional semifinal.

Through the first four innings, Suess had nine strikeouts and had only allowed one runner to reach scoring position in a shutout.

However in the fifth inning, Marshall used a bit of small ball to get the offense going. Trailing 1-0, Maddux Anacker led off the inning with a single and then moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt.

Teseo Ruelas then put runners at the corners by reaching on a bunt single. Anacker scored the first Marshall run on a Deerfield error. That error also moved Ruelas to third base.

With Ruelas at third, Matthew Motl then scored Ruelas on another Deerfield error to put Marshall up 2-1.

Like Marshall, Deerfield had also struggled against pitching for most of the day. Carson Connelly, who was on the mound for the Cardinals, had only allowed one run to score in the first inning when Suess hit an RBI single to score senior Kris Hahn.

However in the sixth inning, Deerfield got a rally going with two outs. Senior Jackson Drobac hit a triple and then scored on a single from junior Aiden Brown to tie the game at 2-2.

The tie would not last for long as Marshall put two runners on in the seventh with one out. Connelly then hit a two-run double to score Matthew Motl and Ruelas to give the lead back to Marshall.

Later in the inning, Connelly scored on a balk by Deerfield sophomore relief pitcher Landon Brattlie, making the score 5-2. In the bottom of the frame, Connelly recorded a strikeout and a pop out before Brattlie hit a single to keep the inning going.

Reaching the 100-pitch limit, Brady Kleinheinz came in for relief of Connelly. Kleinheinz got a pop out to end the game and give Marshall the 5-2 win. The Cardinals ended up advancing to sectionals with an 8-5 win over Belleville.

In the loss, Suess pitched 6 1/3 innings with 11 strikeouts. Brattlie went 3x4 at the plate and had two strikeouts pitching in relief.

Deerfield ends the year with a record of 16-7. The seniors who will graduate from the roster are Jackson Drobac, Kris Hahn, Adam Suess and Austin Anderson.