WATERLOO, Iowa—After a tough season last year against Waterloo, the Stingers have all but dominated the Bucks through the first five games between the two teams this season. In the third game against Waterloo in the last five days, Willmar prevailed for the third straight time, this time a 5-3 win.

Waterloo (30-17 overall, 6-6 second half) grabbed the early lead in the bottom of the first inning, but as has been the case this season, the Stingers (28-13, 6-5) stuck around and battled back to take the lead. TJ Whidby, who started for Willmar, held the Bucks off the board for the next two innings after giving up the run in the first frame to allow his team the chance at a comeback.

In the top of the fourth, the Stingers did just that and tallied two runs to take the lead from Waterloo. Following Reagan Fowler’s pop out to begin the inning, Nick Rivera served as the catalyst to ignite the rally, like he did on multiple occasions during the night. Rivera blooped a single to right field and Jack Ross followed with a solid single up the middle. Brett Barbier then drove Rivera in from second when he hammered a double into the alley in left to tie the game at one. Later in the inning Sean Beesley singled to give Willmar the lead.

Waterloo got one run back in the bottom of the fourth against Whidby to tie the game at two, but two innings later the Stingers’ offense struck for two more runs to take the lead for good. Rivera singled to start the winning rally and Ross followed suit with one out in the sixth. With Barbier at the plate, Rivera scored on a passed ball, and then later in the at bat, Barbier drove in his second run of the night with a sacrifice fly to make it 4-2.

Again Waterloo answered with another run, but that was all it would get in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Stingers got the run right back in the top of the seventh to make it a two-run lead again, 5-3.

Brady Anderson came on in the ninth and locked down his fifth save of the year for Willmar. Whidby finished with seven quality innings of work, giving up the three runs, while scattering eight hits and striking out two. For the second straight start he also walked only one batter.

The 2014 season is presented by Charter. For more coverage of the Stingers visit the West Central Tribune’s website at www.wctrib.com.

Tonight’s Center for Diagnostic Imaging player of the game was TJ Whidby. 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.