EXPLORERS EDGE REDHAWKS IN EXTRA-INNING INSTANT CLASSIC

Dillon Thomas doubled towards the left-center gap two batters into the game. Two hitters later, former Explorer Jose Sermo singled him home as Peniel Otaño surrendered his 16th first-inning run.

The Explorers made two quick outs to start their half of the first, but there was no need for concern. Zac Vooletich served a single to right, bringing up the American Association’s hottest bat, D’Shawn Knowles.

The switch-hitter smoked a triple, his fifth of the season, down the right-field line, driving in Vooletich. Josh Day singled him in four pitches later to give Sioux City a 2-1 lead.

Austin Davis came up big in the second and tagged RedHawks starter Tyler Jandron with a two-run blast that slammed off the top of the wall in left and bounded over, tripling Sioux City’s lead. After the big fly, the left-hander allowed neither a run nor a hit the rest of his outing.

The RedHawks added a run in the fourth to bring the score to 4-2, and that’s where it stayed over the next few innings. Otaño gave way to Nate Gercken and eventually Jaren Jackson as the bullpen held serve. Fargo-Moorhead’s staff matched Sioux City’s as Kyle Johnston fired 1-2-3 frames in both the sixth and seventh.

Chase Jessee came on the eighth for Sioux City and struck out his first batter, but plunked the next hitter, Brendan Dadson. Michael Hallquist stood in next and crushed his second triple of the evening out Davis’s head in center, plating Dadson and pulling his club within one.

The high-leverage lefty punched out Alec Olund for the second out, but the pinch-hitting Nicholas Northcut singled past Day at shortstop as Fargo-Moorhead tied the game in the eighth inning for the second night in a row.

Parker Harm took over on the mound in the bottom of the eighth, striking out Henry George to open his outing, but he hit Vooletich with a pitch and walked Knowles on four pitches.

Manager Steve Montgomery turned to his bullpen again, electing to use his closer Felix Cepeda (6-2) in the ninth inning of a 4-4 ballgame. The Dominican flamethrower sent the RedHawks down easily to give the Explorers a proper chance to walk it off in the bottom of the frame.

Harm tossed a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth as the X’s headed into their 13th extra-inning contest.

Cepeda hopped back out for the top of the tenth as Juan Fernandez began the inning as the zombie runner at second base. The right-hander struck out Sermo and forced Dadson to roll over to first. Torin Montgomery was there to make the play, but the baseball took an awkward bounce, deflected off the first baseman’s glove and set up runners at first and third with just one out.

RedHawks manager Chris Coste sent Parker Stroh to pinch-run for Dadson as Cepeda sent Hallquist down on strikes for the second out of the first extra frame. Cepeda kept the scoreboard clean as Olund flied to the left to move the game into the bottom of the tenth.

Garrett Alexander (1-3) emerged out of the bullpen as the best hope to extend the game into the 11th inning. He never retired a batter.

Torin Montgomery began the inning at second as the zombie runner and a wild pitch moved him to third. Alexander walked Davis and George, giving Vooletich a chance to win it. He lined the 2-1 offering into left field—the X’s first hit since Davis’s home run in the second inning—knocking in Montgomery and winning the game for the Explorers. 

The victory marked the 11th walk-off win of the season for the Sioux City Explorers as they regained a six-game lead in the West Division.