Clinton Lumber Kings

CLINTON, Iowa — Behind a dominant pitching performance and a two-hit, two-RBI night from the newest member of the club, third baseman Nick Venteicher, the Clinton LumberKings (8-5) blanked the Normal CornBelters (5-7) 8-0 Tuesday night at NelsonCorp Field in front of a crowd of 4,614.

Venteicher's bat sparked the middle innings for Clinton. The third baseman punched an RBI single in the fourth to put the LumberKings up 2-0 and then came through again in the sixth with a line drive to left that brought in another run. He would eventually reach third after an error by the left fielder, setting the table for another run.

The scoring opened in the third when Jaylen Ziegler scored on a groundout from Jalen Martinez, who finished 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored.

Ziegler drove in two more runs on sacrifice flies in the fourth and seventh innings, bringing his RBI total to three. Sam Wiese added a triple in the fifth to score Martinez, and Brett White laced a double in the sixth to drive in Venteicher.

Clinton added its final run in the eighth as Colin Coonradt singled home Martinez to cap a 13-hit night for the offense. Coonradt, White, and Venteicher each had two-hit nights, while Ziegler and Martinez led the team in RBIs.

On the mound, Brody Meyers (2-0) earned the win and delivered five shutout innings, allowing just two hits while striking out five. Relievers Elijah Green, Payton Hodges, and Hunter Dierksen combined for four scoreless innings to preserve the shutout. Green fanned four over two innings, while Hodges and Dierksen closed the door with a combined three strikeouts and one hit allowed.

Normal's pitching staff struggled to hold Clinton in check. Jackson McDonald (0-2) allowed three earned runs over three and a third innings, while five CornBelters relievers gave up another five runs and eight more hits. McDonald, Zach O'Donnell, Owen Corbett, Jake Fenton, Toby Schriefer, and Nick Krueger each worked at least part of an inning, with Clinton scoring in six of their eight offensive frames.

The LumberKings lead the Prospect League with four shutout victories with tonight's win. The Burlington Bees, who came in tonight tied for first with the LumberKings, lost to the Quincy Doggy Paddlers, putting the LumberKings one game ahead in the standings in first place. 

The LumberKings welcome the Danville Dans, for a two-game series starting tomorrow, for the first time since 2023. First pitch is set for 6:30. Fans can watch the game on prospectleaguenetowrk.com or listen for free online at wcciradio.com or tune in at 100.3 WCCI-FM.