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Quad Cities River Bandits

Swing drop seesaw battle

August 3, 2005 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Quad Cities River Bandits News Release


Can't hold on to ninth-inning lead; Extra inning homer the difference

The Swing of the Quad Cities battled hard Wednesday night, but in the end Clinton had the answer, rallying to defeat the home team, 10-7, in ten innings at John O'Donnell Stadium. A two-run homer highlighted a three run final inning for the LumberKings, who forced extras with a rally in the top of the ninth.

The loss dropped Quad Cities (23-17, 59-50) back into a first-place tie in the Midwest League's Western Division, along with Burlington and Wisconsin who both won Wednesday night. Also victorious was West Michigan, moving all four teams into a tie for the league's overall best record.

The Swing are now 3-9 in extra inning contests, having lost their last eight in a row.

Nursing a 7-6 lead heading into the ninth, Jason Cairns (0-3) came on looking for the save. After retiring the first man he faced, Cairns allowed a one-out single before finding himself in a two-out, men at the corners situation. With Tug Hulett at the plate, Cairns uncorked a wild pitch that skipped past catcher Cody Palmer, allowing Craig Hurba to come home with the game-tying run.

In the tenth, matters only got worse for Cairns. After walking the leadoff man, Emerson Frostad lifted a 1-1 pitch over the fence in right field to give Clinton a 9-7 advantage. The LumberKings would push across one more run in the frame to hand Cairns the loss, tallying a total of four runs and four hits on the Swing closer.

The comeback was not the first of the ballgame, as Quad Cities had already battled back in what looked to be another Swing come-from-behind victory in the making. Down 4-0, Quad Cities put up a three spot in the bottom of the fourth. After Matt Shepherd walked with one out, Juan Lucena moved him to third with a single. Nick Stavinoha then brought home the Swing's first run with a sacrifice fly, and Eric Verbryke followed with an RBI single. To cap the scoring, Clinton center fielder Brandon Cashman misplayed a Jake Mullinax line drive into a triple, and the deficit was trimmed to 4-3.

Down 6-3, the home team again fought back in the seventh. After loading the bases without the benefit of a hit, Shepherd cleared the bags and tied the ballgame with a three-run double to right, advancing to third on the throw home. Two batters later, the Swing shortstop scored the go-ahead run with the infield drawn in, as Stavinoha bounced a base hit over the head of the shortstop Hulett.

The winning pitcher for Clinton (19-21, 57-53) was John Lujan (3-3), who allowed only one hit while shutting down the Swing offense over the final four innings of the ballgame.

UP NEXT: The Swing and LumberKings continue the series on Thursday night, as Quad Cities sends Phillip Andersen (3-1, 3.11) to the mound against Michael Schlact (8-5, 4.44). First pitch is scheduled for 7:00, and pregame coverage on Progressive Talk AM 1270 will begin at 6:45.

UPCOMING PROMOTION: Tickets are available for all Swing games by calling (563) 328-2000.

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