Have to make this quick- Sea Kittens (3-2) have a playoff game TONIGHT- June 12, 7:30 PM, Bowman #2.
But last week… the Cats surged to a 12-0 lead in the top of the first inning against Dairyland Dingers (4-1) behind grand slam home runs from Joe Hennessy and David The Ringer Engeldinger, and then turned around and gave up a grand slam in the bottom of the inning en route to a 15-14 walkoff loss. The Cats got rope-a-doped.
The game notes sum it up best. Sometimes things that ain’t never before happened… happen. But tonight- it’s a new game!
Results
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dingers | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 15 |
| Sea Kittens | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
Dingers
| AB | R | H | RBI | 2B | 3B | HR | BB | SF | IP | RA | WK | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Sea Kittens
| Player | AB | R | H | RBI | 2B | 3B | HR | BB | SF | IP | RA | WK | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zen Master Rowe | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 15 | 0 | 1 |
| Kendra All Day Haight | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| David “The Ringer” Engeldinger | 4 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mama Cat O’Brien | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Man-Aaron Jossart | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Abi Fredrich | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Braden “Gas” Furness | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Megan “Slam” Salm | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Hennessy | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red Shoes Hewitt | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 28 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 15 | 0 | 1 |
Salmon Snacks
- Just gonna leave to bag on the counter for anyone who needs a Salmon Snack after that
- David for his 2-homer game
- Joe & David for their grand slams
- Laura for being the Cats’ reliable defender
- Aaron & David to heal their bruises
Next Up
Playoffs! June 12, the 3rd-seeded Sea Kittens (3-2) tangle with 6th-seeded Whomping Willows (2-3) in a 7:30 contest on Bowman Field 2. The Cats won the teams’ first matchup 18-0 but have allowed a run in every inning they’ve played since.
Game Notes
- Joe played in his 250th game as a Sea Kitten!
- One the one hand, Sea Kittens were 83-6-1 when scoring 14 or more runs prior to this contest, but…
- …Sea Kittens are now 3-41 all-time when allowing 15 or more runs. So that was a bad choice.
- The 12-run first inning was the biggest in Sea Kitten history!
- The 12-run lead blown was the biggest in Sea Kitten history (sad face)
- Previous was an 8-run 2nd inning lead vs Soft’s Balls, September 28, 2016
- After accounting for the Dingers’ 6 1st-inning runs…
- …this was the biggest 1st-inning lead the Cats have ever blown
- Up by 3 after 3 full innings? Cats had only lost 6 times- and only twice since 2014…
- …but have now done it twice in last 6 games
- First walkoff loss since back-to-back walkoff losses in August/ September 2023
- First time Cats have scored 10+ runs in back-to-back games and lost both
- First time Cats have allowed 15+ runs in back-to-back games since July 2023, when it was also very smoky #blameCanada
- Sea Kittens fell to 18-4 when hitting 3 or more HR
- Joe’s grand slam was the 8th of his career, and the first Sea Kitten grand slam in MSSC play
- This was the second time the Cats had two Slams in a game- that last time was June 5, 2013 when Detroit Josh Ghena smacked two against Rusty Weber’s Factorioles.
- David became the 8th person to record 10 total bases in a single game- the first since Slash Grutzik August 10, 2023
| Player | Games |
|---|---|
| Dan DynamOele | 8 |
| Alex Puma Latzka | 7 |
| Joe Hennessy | 4 |
| Mercury Stevens | 2 |
| Stephen Slash Grutzik | 2 |
| Zen master Rowe | 1 |
| David The Ringer Engeldinger | 1 |
| Doc Kornis | 1 |
| Total | 10 |
Sea Kitten Grand Slams
Smokin’ Joe Litchfield 8-26-2010, 5th inning in 30-7 W over Bombers (Olbrich 1 (248′))
Detroit Josh Ghena (2) 6-5-2013, 1st inning & 6th inning in 21-1 W over Baltimore Factorioles (Olbrich 3)
Dan DynamOele 6-22-2016, 4th inning in 10-4 W over Beckett Tax & Accounting (Olbrich 3)
Dan DynamOele 6-29-2016, 1st inning in 14-9 W over Infield Flies (Warner 5)
Mercury Stevens 7-13-2016, 4th inning in 12-7 W over South Side Badgers (Olbrich 4)
Joe Hennessy 8-31-2016, 3rd inning in 14-9 W over Affordable Quality HVAC (Olbrich 4)
Joe Hennessy 7-5-2017, 6th inning in 19-7 W over Steal Your Base (Olbrich 4)
Joe Hennessy 5-16-2018, 1st inning in 19-8 W over Wisco Kids (Olbrich 4)
Joe Hennessy 8-19-2018, 7th inning in 19-16 W over Andrea’s Team (Harmony Tourney, Olbrich 3)
Joe Hennessy 10-17-2018, 5th inning in 16-21 L to Wilson’s Coolers (Olbrich 1 (275′))
Man-Aaron Jossart 5-29-2019, 4th inning in 13-8 W over Monona Mashers (Olbrich 3)
Joe Hennessy 7-24-2019, 6th inning in 11-20 L to Pitches B Trippin’ (Olbrich 4)
Alex Latzka 6-23-2021, 2nd inning in 13-25 L to Silver Eagle (Olbrich 3)
Joe Hennessy 8-18-2021, 6th inning in 14-5 W over Driftless Renovations (Olbrich 3)
Joe Hennessy 6-5-2025, 1st inning in 14-15 L to Dairyland Dingers (Bowman 2)
David The Ringer Engeldinger 6-5-2025, 1st inning in 14-15 L to Dairyland Dingers (Bowman 2)