SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS PRESS RELEASE
Phone: 817.739.3693
Website: xsbaseball.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 19, 2023
By: Dan Vaughan Jr.
X’S CAGE THE COUGARS
ROAD SWING OFF TO A GOOD START
GENEVA, IL – The Sioux City Explorers (6-1) picked up a pair of seventh inning runs on a sac-fly RBI from Daniel Perez and a double from Matt Lloyd to break a two-all tie on the way to a 4-2 win over the Kane County Cougars (2-5) on Friday night.
Both teams got stellar starting pitching with X’s starter Mitchell Verburg going 5.1 and Jake Fox working six for the Cougars. Vergurg, who was named the Pitcher of the Week for the first week, struck out five and held the Cougars to two runs on four hits. Fox would surrender two runs on six hits with four strikeouts with both arms getting a no-decision.
Kane County scored first in the home half of the second on a solo home run to center field off the bat of Jonah Davis to grab the 1-0 lead. The X’s tied it in the top of the third. Kyle Kasser led of the frame with a triple off the wall in right and would come home on a wild pitch from Fox to tie the game at one.
Davis then picked up his second RBI of the night in the fourth on a two-out single, scoring T.J. Bennett off of Verburg to take the lead at 2-1. Sioux City would even the game at two in the sixth inning. Matt Lloyd would single and steal followed by another single from Chase Harris. A wild pitch from Fox moved the runners to second and third. Eury Perez would bring home Llyod on a fielder’s choice RBI grounder to short to tie the game again at two.
Sioux City would take the lead in the top of the seventh while facing reliever Spencer Van Scoyoc (1-1). Kasser would single to lead off the inning, and Vincent Fernandez would be hit by a pitch to set up the X’s. Both runners moved up a base on a wild pitch from Van Scoyoc. The Cougars reliever would strikeout Miguel Sierra but would surrender a sac-fly RBI to Daniel Perez, and the final run on a RBI double by Llyod would drive in the fourth run that would prove to be the difference in a 4-2 final.
The X’s got some solid relief work in the series opening win. Brandon Brosher (1-0) would get Daniel Wasinger to pop out to short with the bases loaded and two outs in the sixth in the relief win while Francys Peguero worked two scoreless innings to get the save.
The Explorers and Cougars play game two of their three-game series Saturday night at Northwest Medicine Field in Geneva, Illinois. Tickets for the season can be purchased online at XSBaseball.com, in person at the Lewis and Clark Park Box Office or by calling 712-277-WINS. You can catch all the X’s action on aabaseball.tv and on radio at KSCJ 94.9 FM and 1360 AM.