SPICER, Minn. — It was a homestand that Mother Nature didn't want to happen, but given the opportunity, Greg Lambert came through when the Stingers needed him most. 

After torrential rains flooded out Bill Taunton Stadium in Willmar, the Stingers moved their final four home games to Green Lake Diamond in Spicer, including Friday's doubleheader against the Waterloo Bucks. Down a run and down to the final out, Lambert crushed a walk-off, two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh in a 7-6 doubleheader finale victory over the Bucks to secure a playoff berth for Willmar for the third-straight season. 

Just a couple of innings before, things didn't look too favorable for Willmar after Waterloo scored five times in the top of the fourth to take a 6-1 lead. But the Stingers orchestrated their largest comeback of the season in just three innings thanks to three crucial extra base hits. 

In the bottom of the fifth inning the Stingers got the first two of those extra base knocks, scoring four times to get right back within a run. Danny Pardo (Montevallo) had the first of those hits, cracking a two-run double to center field to plate Brandon Perez (USC) and Tyler Smith (Pepperdine) to trim the deficit to three. After Lambert reached on a fielder's choice, Justin Toerner (Cal State Northridge) came through with the second big hit, when he lined a triple over the head of Waterloo centerfielder Alex Boxwell to bring around Pardo and Lambert. 

Devin Rose (Eastern Illinois) came on in relief of Stingers starter Jayce Vancena (Michigan), and pitched three scorless innings to keep the Stingers right in the game. Rose, who eventually picked up the win, yielded just two hits. He struck out three and stranded three runners aboard, including one in the sixth inning to keep the Stingers down just one. 

That set the stage for Lambert's heroics in the bottom of the seventh. Quincy McAfee reached on a one-out double to bring the tying run to the plate. Pardo couldn't bring McAfee home, but Lambert followed by crushing a 1-1 pitch over the left field wall to win the game. 

The home run by Lambert was his second of the day. He blasted a solo shot in the first game of the doubleheader in what ended up being a 5-3 extra-inning loss to Waterloo. 

Tonight’s Center for Diagnostic Imaging player of the game was Greg Lambert. CDI is your local medical imaging provider. It’s your choice where you go for medical imaging, for MRI, CT, mammograms and pain injections, choose CDI. Visit online at myCDI.com/CentralMN.

The Stingers continue the homestand with a two-game series against the Madison Mallards that starts with a 7:05 p.m. matchup on Saturday night at Green Lake Diamond in Spicer. Saturday's game is 50s Night featuring a pregame classic car show and music presented by Country Stop and A&W. 

The 2016 Stingers season is presented by Marcus Construction. For more coverage of the Stingers visit the West Central Tribune online at www.wctrib.com.