ROCHESTER, Mich.  – Oakland scored the first three runs of the game on Friday, but the Milwaukee baseball team responded with runs in each of the next five frames to top Oakland 8-6 in game one of the weekend series.
 
"Not a very clean ballgame for either team, but we did enough at the right times," head coach Scott Doffek said. "[Keagon] Kaufmann did a great job in a tough spot and ultimately, that was the difference in the game."
 
Trailing 3-0 in the third, Luke Seidel put MKE on the board with an RBI single to left center and an inning later, Jack Thelen blasted his third home run of the season to tie it 3-3.
 
The teams traded runs in the fifth before the Panthers took control in the sixth.
 
With the bases loaded, Mark Connelly was hit by a pitch to score one and Seidel scored one batter later.
 
In the seventh, the Panthers capitalized on Oakland miscues as Tommy Benson scored on a wild pitch and Jake Novak pushed the lead to 8-4 as he scored on an error.
 
With the bases loaded in for Oakland in the bottom of the seventh, Keagon Kaufmann took over and kept the Panthers in front 8-5, getting out of the jam.
 
Kaufmann stayed on for a scoreless eighth and after a leadoff single in the ninth, AJ Blubaugh entered.
 
The closer worked around a single and recorded two strikeouts, picking up his third save of the year to seal the victory for the Panthers.
 
Four different Panthers had at least two hits with Seidel finishing 3-for-6 to lead the way.
 
Connelly drove in a pair as did Thelen with his two run homer.
 
Game two of the series against Oakland is set for Saturday at 1:00 pm. Live coverage links available on MKEPanthers.com.
 
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