Clinton Falters in 6-3 Loss to Cougars
July 4, 2015 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Clinton LumberKings News Release
Clinton, IA - Though the venue changed, the result remained the same, as the Clinton LumberKings (3-7, 29-50) fell for the third straight night to the Kane County Cougars (9-1, 45-33). At Ashford University Field in Clinton, the Cougars struck first then sent eight men to the plate as part of a four-run sixth inning in route to the victory.
Kane County opened up the scoring in the third on an RBI groundout by Ildemaro Vargas, the first of his two RBIs on the night. The LumberKings responded an inning later vs. Cougars' starter Brad Keller (W, 4-7). Singles by Pat Leyland and Estarlyn Morales opened up the frame, while Wayne Taylor's RBI single tied the game at one.
Jeffeson Medina (L, 3-8) settled down after the third, but ran into trouble in the sixth inning, as the defense behind him led to a four-run inning. A fielding error by Clinton third baseman Joe DeCarlo began the inning, as Marty Herum reached for the second of four times on the night. Colin Bray reached on a bunt single, while Michael Perez's ground rule RBI double made it 2-1 Kane County. Following a strikeout, Galli Cribbs made it 3-1 with an RBI single, Victor Reyes made it 4-1 with an RBI base hit, and Vargas' second RBI of the night made it 5-1. Medina allowed five runs, just two earned, over six innings.
Keller pitched only five innings, but gave up only one run and turned it over to the Cougars' bullpen. Jose Martinez worked two perfect innings, but Clinton rallied against Nick Baker. Four consecutive one-out singles from the Clinton two through five hitters cut the deficit in half, as Estarlyn Morales' two-RBI single made it 5-3. But Baker got DeCarlo to pop up to the catcher and the righty struck out Wayne Taylor to end the inning.
The Cougars tallied an insurance run off of Hawtin Buchanan in the ninth inning, while Zac Curtis (SV, 18) pitched a perfect ninth inning for his second save in as many nights. Eight of the nine Kane County starters recorded at least one hit, while Colin Bray led the way with three hits. Seven of Clinton's starters had a hit, as Pat Leyland led with three.
Kane County will aim for a sweep of the home and home series Sunday afternoon. Markus Solbach (7-2, 2.69) will make his third start vs. Clinton, while 19-year-old Zack Littell (2-3, 3.45) will make his first start vs. Kane County. First pitch at Ashford University Field is set for 2:00 CT. The LumberKings broadcast can be heard on WCCI 100.3 FM, WCCIRadio.com, and LumberKings.com.
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