Baseball team racks up fifth win in a row
By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
It’s several months away, but by all looks, a spring football game broke out Monday afternoon between the visiting Brodhead-Juda and East Troy baseball teams.
All the Trojans were missing was an extra point.
East Troy banged out 14 hits and scored 16 runs in a wild 16-10 Rock Valley Conference victory. The Trojans’ fifth straight win improved them to 7-3 overall and 4-3 in the RVC.
Heading into action this week, Jefferson continues to lead the pack at 6-0, followed by McFarland at 7-1, Edgerton at 5-0, East Troy at 4-3, Evansville at 3-3 and Whitewater at 1-5.
There were plenty of offensive leaders Monday afternoon for East Troy.
Nick Ruffalo, Evan Wick, Will Iloncaie, Jason Dopke, Nick Bertschinger and Chad Meddaugh all banged out two hits apiece to pace the Trojans.
Dopke and Meddaugh each drove in three runs and scored twice, while Ruffalo had two runs scored and two RBI and Iloncaie two RBI and a run scored. Also collecting RBI were Jon Ciriacks and Nick Bertschinger, who had a triple.
Bertschinger pitched three innings to pick up the win. Dopke and Jason Schultz combined to work the other four innings.
East Troy’s win Monday came on the heels of a non-conference doubleheader sweep Saturday at New Lisbon. The Trojans collected wins of 10-2 an 7-6.
Back-to-back five-run innings were the difference in the 10-2 win, as East Troy took control by the fourth inning.
Offensive leaders included Bertschinger with two hits and two runs scored, Iloncaie with two hits, a run scored and two doubles and Logan Mitchel with two doubles and two runs scored.
Schultz added a hit, a run scored and three RBI, while Ruffalo had two hits, including a triple, two RBI and two runs scored.
Iloncaie fanned seven batters in four innings to pick up the win, followed by a three-inning relief stint by Ciriacks, who walked one and struck out two.
Specific details from the 7-6 win were unavailable this week. Offensive leaders included Dopke with three hits a run scored and two RBI and Schultz with two runs scored, a hit and an RBI. Mitchell and Ruffalo chipped in with a hit and an RBI each.
Ruffalo worked all seven innings to pick up the complete-game win.
East Troy opened play this week with an easy 15-3 RVC win at Big Foot.
The Trojans trailed 3-2 after three innings, but erupted for seven runs in the fourth to take control and never looked back.
Dopke collected three hits, a run scored and three RBI, followed by Ryan Olsen with three hits, two runs scored and two RBI. Ciriacks added two hits and three runs scored, while Mitchell had two hits, a run scored and three RBI.
Iloncaie homered for the Trojans and finished with two runs scored and two RBI.
Picking up the win for East Troy was Iloncaie, who worked six innings, and allowed seven hits, three earned runs, three walks and struck out nine. Ciriacks allowed two hits and struck out one in one inning on the hill
The Trojans were back in action Tuesday afternoon at McFarland, followed by a home game Thursday with the Spartans. East Troy travels to Parkview Friday.
