WILLMAR–On the road for the second time in 2010, the Stingers fell behind early Friday night in Alexandria and were unable to recover, losing 6-5 to the Beetles. In the first game of a four-game road swing, Willmar starter Charley Olson gave up four runs in the bottom of the first after a controversial play in rightfield. With two down in the inning, Stingers outfielder Sean Dwyer appeared to make a remarkable diving catch in rightfield to end the inning, but it was ruled that the ball bounced out of Dwyer’s glove as he made the catch. The first two runs of the game scored on the play, opening the floodgates for the Beetles.
Willmar had a nice response in the top of the second, scoring twice to pull within two runs, but after a scoreless third, a pair of Beetles runs in the fourth made it 6-2. The Stingers fought back, scoring once in the fifth and twice in the sixth, but were held scoreless the rest of the way. Stingers starter Charley Olson gave up six earned runs on eight hits in five innings to earn the loss, but mixed his pitches well, striking out six Beetles along the way. In his Stingers debut, Florida Gulf Coast sophomore Jacob Barnes impressed in relief, striking out three in two innings.
Friday night saw yet another unique lineup from manager Matt Hollod, who has yet to repeat a batting order this season. For the first time this year, Isaac Ballou was out of the lineup, so Matt Serna suited up in centerfield, playing his fifth different defensive position in 2010. Serna upped his team-leading RBI total to seven and Jordan Smith drove in a run of his own, going two for five in the ballgame.
The 4-5 Stingers head north Friday, for the first of three with the Duluth Huskies before heading home on June 16th to host the Rochester Honkers at 7:05 pm at Bill Taunton Stadium. For tickets, call the Stingers’ ticket office at 320-222-2010, or visit willmarstingers.com for more information. And for comprehensive Stingers coverage, make sure to log on to wctrib.com. The 2010 season is presented by Charter.
