by Vern Hollister - Correspondent

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As Hall of Fame manager and player Frankie Frisch used to say, "Oh, them bases on balls."

In quest of their third regional title in three years, Goodman-Pembine held a 3-0 lead behind Scott Taylor who struck out nine of the first eleven batters he faced. Taylor had allowed one hit to Wausaukee's Rangers and had them flailing at his curveball and late on his fastball; but like a bulb burning out, Taylor suddenly lost his control, walked four straight hitters, and the Rangers scored four fourth inning runs to take the lead and propel them to a 7-6 region win.

The game took two days. After two innings, rain halted play when a downpour sent players and fans scurrying to cars and to buses. Meanwhile, the deluge soaked Dunbar's playing field, and the game was re-scheduled for Thursday to be picked up in the third inning.

"We lost our momentum," Patriots manager Jeremiah Fisk said. "We were on top of our game last night. Tonight, we weren't as focused. We weren't as intense."

Both starting pitchers, Taylor and Wausaukee's Kevin Jose, continued on the hill. For Taylor, it looked like business as usual when three Rangers went down swinging in the third and the first batter in the fourth. Goodman-Pembine had scored two in their half of the third when Mark Tomaszewski's triple sent the singling Alex Taylor across the plate. Tomaszewski reached home following a rare Ranger error. The Patriots held a cozy 3-0 lead before the second-night floodgates opened.

"What'd we give em? Four-five runs?" Fisk said. "You can't do that, especially against a good team like that."

When the top of the fourth concluded, the Rangers had scored four runs on four walks, two wild pitches, and two hits that came after Andrew Janczy relieved Taylor.

Wausaukee manager Bill Wickman's brother Bob is a relief pitcher in the big leagues. Wickman said, in essence, that both starters, Jose and Taylor, came into the second day as relief pitchers. Each had warmed up the day before. Each had thrown hard for two innings, and when fatigue for a relief pitcher sets in, that's it.

"The body just shuts down," Wickman said. "I have the utmost respect for Scotty as a player. I think he gave it all he had. You'll notice," Wickman said, "that as Kevin went along, his ball got slower and slower. I asked him if he wanted to go before the game, and he said, 'I want the ball.' Jose pitched a heckuva game."

Janczy didn't allow a hit in the fifth inning, but Wausaukee scored two runs when the shaken Patriots committed four errors. The ultimate winning run crossed the plate in the sixth when Jose helped his own cause with a single that drove in Adam Francour. Francour reached base on a walk and advanced to second on a throwing error.

Goodman-Pembine got one run back in the sixth after a walk to Taylor Ziolkowski. Ziolkowski scored on Jon Komp's RBI single. Two Patriots liners in the inning went right at Rangers.

"They're a real good ball team," Fisk said. "They didn't make many mistakes."

Down by three entering the seventh, the Patriots hoped for another last-ditch rally. Ben McClellan and Alex Taylor singled with no one out to bring up the top of the batting order and the big sticks. When the Rangers rightfielder had trouble picking up the ball, McClellan's pinchrunner and Taylor took the extra base.

Scott Taylor drove in one run, and Alex scored on a wild pitch.

Wickman lifted Jose, sent him to first base, and called on hard-throwing ace, Francour. He'd shut down Florence for the semifinal win.

"I hesitated to bring in Francour too early because Goodman-Pembine is a fastball hitting club," Wickman said.

Though Scott Taylor drove in a run, he was nipped at first, one out. Tomaszewski lined a shot toward right off Francour that Jose speared, a great catch. Ziolkowski's blooper to the outfield fringe wasn't quite out of the shortstop's reach, and the Rangers grabbed the region title.

"I've got to give our kids a lot of credit," Wickman said. "Our kids believed coming in they could overcome the 1-0 lead and win."

Wausaukee carried a 14-5 record into the game and tied for first in the M & O with Peshtigo. Wickman said they defeated Peshtigo three times during the season. The Pats ended with a record of 14-4, but oh, those bases on balls.

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