Clinton Walks Off Cape, 4-3

Clinton Walks Off Cape, 4-3
Box Score
June 18, 2022

FROM CLINTON:

CLINTON, Iowa - On Saturday night the Clinton LumberKings edged out the Cape Catfish 4-3, in walk-off fashion.
 
The reigning Prospect League Pitcher of The Week, Jared Simpson (Iowa), was on the mound for the LumberKings. The lefty followed up a 9-strikeout performance last Sunday by retiring his first 16 batters and striking out 12 through six innings of work. 
 
Clinton gave Simpson an early lead in the bottom half of the third inning. Cade Moss (University of Iowa) got the scoring going with an RBI double, scoring Matt Scherrman (UW-Oshkosh) from second base and giving Clinton a 1-0 lead. Isaiah Thompson (Indiana State) sent Cade Moss home on a single, extending the lead by one. 
 
The LumberKings extended the lead to 3-0 in the fifth. The LumberKings' executed a double-steal with runners on the corners. Cade Moss crossed the plate.
 
In the seventh the Catfish crawled back, scoring three runs off Connor Giusti (UW-Oshkosh) and Cole Conner (Oakton CC).
 
In the bottom of the ninth, Jeremy Conforti (College of DuPage) hit Matt Scherrman home on an RBI single to give the LumberKings their first walk-off of the season. 
 
Cole Conner (2-0) got the win in relief after allowing just one earned run on three hits in 2.1 innings of work.
 
Marshall Brown (1-2, Arkansas Tech.) was tagged with the loss after giving up two hits and the game-winning run in 0.2 frames. 
 
Clinton will welcome the Alton River Dragons to town on June 19. First pitch will be at 2:00 p.m.

---

FROM CAPE:

CLINTON, Iowa - In a game that appeared to be headed to extra innings, the Clinton LumberKings capitalized on a double, a ground out and a single to score in the bottom of the ninth inning Saturday night and edge the Cape Catfish 4-3.

The loss extended Cape's losing streak to three games and dropped their record to 7-10, last place in the Prospect League's Prairie Land Division. Meanwhile, Clinton improved to 9-9. The LumberKings are on a three-game winning streak and are in second place in the league's Great River Division.

Clinton starter Jared Simpson (The University of Iowa) pitched six innings of shutout baseball, allowing just one hit, a sixth-inning single by Dalton Rudd (Western Kentucky University), while striking out 12 Catfish and walking none.

"We ran into a really good starter and fell behind early," said Catfish field manager Stephen Larkin.

The LumberKings picked up two runs in the third inning on a one-out walk and stolen base by Matt Scherrman (University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh), a double by Cade Moss (University of Iowa) that drove in Scherrman, and a single by Isaiah Thompson (Indiana State University), that scored Moss.

Clinton picked up a solo run in the fifth inning when Moss was hit by a pitch, Thompson singled driving Moss to third, and Moss stole home when he and Thompson executed a double steal.

The Catfish scored all three of their runs in the seventh inning thanks to a double by Ty Stauss (Southeast Missouri State), an RBI ground out by Cam Careswell (University of Missouri) that drove Stauss home, a walk and stolen base by J.D. Ortiz (SIU-Carbondale) who subsequently scored on a double by Blake Barton (Belmont University), and a double by Cam Hill (Purdue) that plated Barton.

The game stayed tied 3-3 until the bottom of the ninth when Scherrman hit a one-out double, advanced to third on an infield out by Moss, and then scored on a two-out, two-strike single by Jeremy Conforti (College of Dupage) to secure Clinton's win.

"It was a good game and a good fight," Larkin said. Even though they lost Saturday night, Larkin said the Catfish will learn from it. "We've got to make adjustments, that's the name of the game, and we will."

The Catfish finished the game with five hits and no errors while the LumberKings had eight hits and one error. Cole Conner (Oakton Community College) pitched the final 2 1/3 innings for Clinton and was credited with his first win of the season against no losses. Marshall Brown (Arkansas Tech) pitched the ninth inning for the Catfish and took the loss, bringing his record to 1-2.

The Catfish travel to Quincy Sunday for a 6:35 p.m. game against the Gems who are 8-9 after winning two games against the Burlington Bees, 11-4 Friday night and 10-0 Saturday night. The Catfish next home game will be Tuesday at Capaha Field against the O'Fallon Hoots.