It was a clash of DRS division rivals on Friday night as the Muskies took on the #7 ranked team in the state, the New Prague Orioles. The anticipation for this game had been building all season long and the Fish came ready to play.

The Muskies wasted little time with the bats. After Kyle Bergstrom started off the 2nd with a single, the next batter, Bryce Rippentrop, gave the Muskies 2-0 lead as he launched a line drive over the right field fence and shattered a window on some helpless little building for his second home run of the season.

Rippentrop also started on the mound for the Fish and decided to bring his good stuff with him. He was dominant early and often. After striking out five through four, the Orioles mounted a modest rally in the 5th stringing together a single from first basemen Meger, a walk from second basemen Seurer, and eventually a clutch 2 RBI single from third basemen Shetka. 2-2 through five innings.

But the Fish answered immediately in their half of the 6th by putting up a three spot. Singles from Tyler Bergstrom and Nick Rost would eventually lead to an RBI Ripp double, an RBI single from Mike Carpentier and a steal of home by Ripp.

Same story in the 7th, a lead off walk from lead off hitter David Stewart led to an RBI double from Kyle Bergstrom, another run driven in for Bryce on a laser to center field that was misplayed, and an RBI single from Muskie rookie Matt Rudorfer led to another crooked number. 8-2 through seven.

New Market added two more runs in the 8th by capitalizing on a New Prague error and using some aggressive baserunning to their advantage. 

But while the Muskies hit the ball well, the real story is the way Ripp set the tone on the mound. Economical and nasty. In the last three innings, Ripp struck out 10 batters. In the 8th, one batter reached after swinging at a ball that squirted by Jay Chlan for the third strike, so Mr. Rippentrop went ahead and just struck out the next batter as well. Four strike outs in one inning. That's a lot. At the end of the day, Bryce walked only one hitter, struck out 18, and drove in four runs on three hits a triple shy of the cycle to boot. Heck of a game, kid. 

Final score, 10-2, Muskies. Fun to watch.