Loons Blank Kernels Thursday, 3-0

MIDLAND, MICH. - The Great Lakes Loons took a no-hitter into the sixth inning Thursday at Dow Diamond before settling for a 3-0 three-hit shutout against the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Alex Hermeling, Philip Pfeifer, Wes Helsabeck and Marcus Crescentini combined for the shutout but fell short of the first no-hitter in Great Lakes history.

In a spot start, Hermeling tossed four no-hit innings in the first start of his career. He struck out five batters while allowing just one walk and throwing only 59 total pitches in a scoreless appearance.

Great Lakes (10-15) tallied a run in the bottom of the third for a 1-0 advantage. Nick Dean walked to open the inning and stole second base during a strikeout by Gage Green. After a wild pitch, Dean was at third base when Omar Estevez ripped an RBI double into left-center field that drove in Dean for the game's first run.

The Loons secured their lead with defense in the fourth inning and two insurance runs in the fifth inning. Logan Landon made a diving catch deep in left-center field in the top of the fourth to rob Zander Wiel of a potential game-tying hit. During the bottom of the fifth, Edwin Rios brought in a run with a bases-loaded walk, and Dean scored on a wild pitch for a 3-0 lead.

Cedar Rapids (15-12) broke up the no-hitter but was unable to score any runs. Jermaine Palacios singled with one out in the sixth inning to deny Great Lakes its first-ever no-hitter. He was stranded at second base, as were Rafael Valera and Wiel after posting doubles in the seventh and ninth innings, respectively.

Pfeifer was credited with his first professional win, improving to 1-0 this season. Helsabeck earned a hold in his Midwest League debut while Crescentini recorded his team-high third save of the year. Kernels starting pitcher Sam Gibbons dropped to 1-3 after the loss, giving up three runs while racking up a season-high eight strikeouts over 4.1 innings pitched.

Game two of this three-game series will be Friday at 7:05 p.m. ET (6:05 p.m. CT) with Kernels southpaw Sam Clay (2-0, 0.79 ERA) scheduled to face Loons southpaw Michael Boyle (1-2, 3.65 ERA). Listen to all of the exciting Midwest League action with Chris Kleinhans-Schulz on 1450 KMRY AM and 93.1 KMRY FM and also online at www.kmryradio.com and www.kernels.com.

Cedar Rapids' next homestand starts May 9 and continues through May 11. Tickets for all Kernels home games and the 2016 Midwest League All-Star Game are available at www.kernels.com, the Kernels Ticket Office and by calling (319) 896-7560. The Kernels Ticket Office is open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Saturdays. The ticket office is closed on Sundays except on Kernels Sunday home dates when it will open at 11:00 a.m.