SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS PRESS RELEASE
Phone: 817.739.3693
Website: xsbaseball.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 28, 2026
EXPLORERS’ RALLY FALLS SHORT IN 4–3 LOSS TO KANE COUNTY
WILLEMAN STRIKES OUT 10 COUGARS
By: Andrew Della Piana
SIOUX CITY, IOWA – Sioux City (43–47) mounted a late push on Friday night but fell 4–3 to Kane County (49–40) in the opener of the final regular‑season homestand.
The Cougars struck first in the opening inning when Josh Allen scored on a fielder’s choice, giving Kane County a 1–0 lead.
Sioux City starter Zach Willeman settled in and dominated the middle innings, striking out the side in the fifth and finishing with 10 strikeouts over six innings. A sharp rebound from his difficult outing against Winnipeg last Saturday.
Kane County extended its lead in the sixth. Jairus Richards scored on a wild pitch to make it 2–0, and Sam Dexter singled to right to bring home Charles Mack, pushing the advantage to 3–0.
Alberto Osuna lifted a sacrifice fly to score Henry George, trimming the deficit to 3–1 in the bottom half.
Sioux City surged after Dillon Tatum opened the seventh inning with a solo homer to left, and moments later Zac Vooletich singled to center, scoring Austin Davis, who hustled all the way from first to tie the game 3–3.
Kane County regained the lead in the eighth. With two outs, Cooper Weiss singled up the middle to score Richards, putting the Cougars ahead 4–3.
The Explorers threatened again in the bottom of the eighth as D’Shawn Knowles stole second and third, but Sioux City couldn’t bring him home.
In the ninth, Austin Davis missed a game‑tying home run by inches down the left‑field line, and the comeback bid fell just short.
Sioux City continues the series with Kane County with a doubleheader on Saturday, starting at 4:05 p.m. Pregame coverage begins at 3:35 p.m. on KSCJ 94.9 FM and 1360 AM. Fans can also watch every American Association game this season on the league’s streaming platform at aabaseball.tv. Tickets for all remaining games are available now by calling the Explorers front office at 712-277-WINS or online at xsbaseball.com.
Notes from the Booth with DV:
-Sioux City is 13-12 in August.
-Austin Davis was honored before the game on his record breaking league stolen base mark.
-Kane County leads the season series 2-1.
-Sioux City stole three bases, giving the team 259.
-The Explorers loss and Sioux Falls loss kept the X’s to a half game behind the Canaries.
-Zach Willeman, with 10 strikeouts reached double diget strikeouts for the third time this season. He is sixth in club history in a single season. He moved into fourth spot all time in club history for career strikeouts with 252.
–ABOUT THE SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS: The Sioux City Explorers are a proud member of the American Association of Professional Baseball in Sioux City, IA. The Explorers play their home games at Security National Bank Field at Lewis & Clark Park. For more information, please visit xsbaseball.com and follow the team on Twitter at @SiouxCityXs and on Facebook at facebook.com/SiouxCityExplorers.
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