Karson Grout Leads Offense with 4 RBI and a Home Run in Victory Over the Bees
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Clinton LumberKings | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 13 | 0 |
|
Burlington Bees | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 3 |
BURLINGTON, Iowa -- The Clinton LumberKings (3-0) defeated the Burlington Bees (0-1) 11-5 on Wednesday night at Community Field.
Karson Grout had a standout night, driving in four runs and going 3-for-5 at the plate. Grout's offensive contributions included a double, a home run, and a single, making him the key player in the LumberKings' victory.
The LumberKings wasted no time establishing their lead in the first inning. Jalen Martinez delivered a double to center field, driving in two runs as Rayth Petersen and Clay Jacobs crossed the plate. Moments later, Karson Grout singled to center field, allowing Martinez to score and giving Clinton a 3-0 lead.
Grout continued his hot streak in the second inning with a double to right field, bringing home Petersen and Jacobs again, extending the lead to 5-0. Burlington responded in the bottom of the second with a sacrifice fly from Skyler Agnew and a wild pitch that allowed Cooper Donlin to score, narrowing the gap to 5-2.
Clinton's offense remained relentless in the fifth inning. Jesse Contreras singled to left field, scoring Blake Timmons, and then came home on a ground out by Jacobs, which increased the lead to 7-2. The Bees managed a solo home run by Agnew in the bottom of the fifth, but the LumberKings responded with two more runs in the sixth, capitalizing on a fielding error by Burlington.
In the seventh, Burlington's Corey Boyette singled to right field, scoring Jackson Reid, but Clinton's Grout answered back in the eighth with a solo home run, pushing the lead to 10-4. RJ Sherwood's RBI single in the ninth added the final run for Clinton, bringing the score to 11-4. The Bees managed one last run in the bottom of the ninth when Boyette singled to shortstop, driving in Landon Akers, but it was too little, too late.
Owen Coffman earned the win for Clinton, pitching five innings and allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out five. The LumberKings' bullpen, led by Elijah Green, Cade Turner, and Carson Knebel, held the Bees in check for the remainder of the game.
The LumberKings return to NelsonCorp Field on Thursday, for the Fourth of July. Box seats are nearly sold out and general admission tickets are still available for purchase on lumberkings.com. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. Fans can tune in to 100.3 WCCI-FM or PLTV.