GRAND RAPIDS – How much rain is too much rain?

That’s a question that Coach Butch Attig and his Reeths-Puffer baseball team will be asking themselves for a while after a 10-4 loss to Forest Hills Northern on Wednesday in a Division 1 regional semifinal game.

Obviously weather was an issue for all West Michigan baseball teams playing in regional games on Tuesday. There was steady rain throughout the afternoon in the area, and some games were postponed.

The Reeths-Puffer-Forest Hills Northern game was originally supposed to be played at Cedar Springs High School at 5 p.m., but was moved to Cornerstone at 6:30 p.m.

An earlier game at Cornerstone was postponed, but the rain finally slowed and the R-P-FH Northern contest finally started at 7:51 p.m., despite a forecast that called for more rain.

The rainfall began once again in the second inning and became steady as the game wore on.

Reeths-Puffer baseball coach Butch Attig, who was upset by the weather-related decisions made about Wednesday’s game.

After the Rockets batted in the top of the fifth inning, umpires and officials met, the teams were called off the field, the game was ruled over and the score was declared final.

The entire situation did not sit well with Coach Attig.

“We shouldn’t have even played this game,” Coach Attig said. “Hindsight is 20-20. But we shouldn’t have played this game. We should have started it tomorrow and played tomorrow. But conditions were equal for both teams. I could make a spectacle, but what is that going to do? It’ll belittle me and our program.”

“It’s going to be a long night and weekend,” Attig added. “I’m struggling a little bit. I can be angry. But in hindsight, I have to celebrate my guys.”

Despite facing a 10-4 deficit, the Rockets had runners in scoring position in the fourth inning and loaded the bases in the fifth, and might have put up a battle in the last two innings.

But those innings never occurred because tournament officials decided to call the game. Those officials were the regional hosts from Cedar Springs High School, according to Attig.

Reeths-Puffer pitcher Jaxson Whitaker gets ready to throw while first baseman Coby Mitchelson (in the background) holds a runner on. 

When the game did start after the 81-minute delay, the Rockets struck first when Kaden Edwards took third on a passed ball, and advanced home after a bad throw to third base.

Forest Hills Northern scored a run of its own in the home half of the first inning to tie the game at 1-1.

The Huskies then scored six runs in the bottom of the second to take a 7-1 lead.

In the top of the third, R-P’s Brody Panozzo ripped a single to left that scored David Wilhelm and Alex Johnson to cut the Rocket deficit to 7-3.

Forest Hills Northern responded with three runs in the home half of the inning to take a 10-3 lead after three innings.

The final run came in the fifth inning when R-P’s Jaxson Whitaker walked with the bases loaded to bring home Johnson.

Reeths-Puffer finishes the season with a record of 26-10 and a Division 1 district championship, which it won last Saturday by beating two state-ranked teams – Mona Shores and Kenowa Hills.

 Jordan Bochnek gets ready to throw a pitch for the Rockets. 

Attig said he was grateful the team won districts, because that allowed him to be with his seven departing seniors for a few more days.

“They’ve helped build this program back up,” the coach said. “I owe so much to everyone. But those seven seniors are very special to me and I’m so proud of them. I’m so thankful that I got to spend another three or four day with them. It’s huge to me.

“My seven seniors deserved a good day to play baseball. Win or lose, they deserved a good day to go out on. They didn’t deserve this or this memory.”