Clinton Lumber Kings

CLINTON, Iowa — The Clinton LumberKings (2-3) fell just short at home Saturday, losing 4-3 to the Burlington Bees (3-2) in a tightly contested Prospect League matchup at NelsonCorp Field.

Clinton struck first in the opening inning when Alex Schimmel's groundout brought in Jaylen Ziegler to give the LumberKings a 1-0 lead. That would be the fourth time in five games that Clinton scored first in the first inning and has lost twice when doing so.

Burlington answered back with a pair of runs in the 4th inning, including a run scored on a passed ball that extended the Bees' lead to 3-1.

The LumberKings chipped away in the fourth when Kaden Frommelt blasted a solo homer to right field, cutting the deficit to 3-2. Clinton knotted the game at three in the sixth inning thanks to Max Burt's RBI single that scored Frommelt.

The Bees reclaimed the lead in the seventh with a clutch RBI double from Corey Boyette that drove in Keanu Spenser, pushing the score to 4-3. The LumberKings were unable to respond over the final innings.

Frommelt finished 4-for-4 with two runs scored and a homer, while Schimmel contributed an RBI and a stolen base. Ethan Dorka and Will Schufreider combined to pitch 8 innings, allowing 4 runs on 11 hits with 8 strikeouts with Schufreider taking his second loss of the season.

The Bees were led offensively by multiple players, including Ryan Skwarek and Corey Boyette, who each drove in a run. 

With the loss tonight, the LumberKings tie their worst start to a season through five games since joining the prospect league in 2021. 

The action continues at NelsonCorp Field on Sunday, where the Clinton Elotes will take the field for the first time in 2025 as they battle with the Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp. First pitch is set for 2:00 p.m. Fans can watch the game for Free on prospectleaguenetwork.com during their promotional weekend or listen on 100.3 WCCI-FM or wcciradio.com