Miners Stumble Late, Fall To ThunderBolts In Extra Innings

From the Southern Miners

MARION, IL – The Southern Illinois Miners got a 2-0 lead in the first inning on Friday night, and thanks to a brilliant outing by  on the mound, held the lead until the top of the eighth inning, when the Windy City ThunderBolts tied the score, then later won with a six-run rally in the eleventh inning to send the Miners to an 8-3 loss at Rent One Park.

The Miners broke through in the first inning with two outs, as ‘s two-run blast into the Southern Illinois bullpen in right-center field off Windy City starter Zac Westcott made the score 2-0. Stubblefield would then settle into a groove, scattering three singles and two walks across seven shutout innings as the Miners kept the lead at 2-0.

But Windy City would lead off the eighth with a double by Blair Beck to chase Stubblefield from the game, and after a strikeout by , Keenyn Walker singled and stole second base. Riley Krane then reached base on an error by , bringing home both runners on base and tying the score at 2-2.  would get the Miners out of the inning and keep the score tied, and the Miners would attempt to rally in the ninth inning.

Earley led off the frame with a walk, and two batters later,  singled to put him in scoring position. But the Miners could not bring in the winning run and the game went to extra innings. After neither team scored in the tenth inning, the ThunderBolts would score six runs in the eleventh for an 8-2 lead.

In the bottom half of the frame, with the International Tiebreaker in effect with an automatic runner at second base, ‘s RBI groundout scored that runner from third base to get one run back and make it 8-3, but it was not enough as the Miners dropped the series opener.
Southern Illinois will look to bounce back in the second game of the series with a special start time of 4:05 p.m. on Saturday.  will get the start for the Miners against Windy City’s T.J. Santiago.
The Southern Illinois Miners are the 2016 Frontier League West Division Champions, the 2014 and 2015 Frontier League East Division Champions and the 2012 Frontier League Champions. They have been awarded the Frontier League Organization of the Year award three times since their inception, and also set a new Frontier League attendance record in 2007, their inaugural season. For ticket information, contact the Rent One Park box office at (618) 998-8499. For any additional information, visit our website at www.southernillinoisminers.com.