Storm Chasers Take Game Three Against Cubs 9-6

DES MOINES, IOWA - For a third straight game, the Omaha Storm Chasers scored a pair of runs in the first inning and on Thursday, led nearly the entire day, coming out on top against the Iowa Cubs 9-6 at Principal Park.

After a Drew Waters double, CJ Alexander started the scoring in the top of the first with his sixth home run of the season, a season-best 429-foot blast to to right center field for a 2-0 Omaha lead.

The Cubs answered right back in the bottom half of the frame as Miles Mastrobuoni doubled in a run to cut the lead down to 2-1 in favor of the Chasers.

Omaha knocked in two more runs in the top of the third, on two triples and a pair of Iowa errors. Alexander connected on his second triple of the year and scored on a throwing error, then Nick Pratto tripled and scored on an error for a 4-1 Omaha lead.

Starting pitcher William Fleming struggled in his fourth start of the year, as he only worked one batter into the third inning, with two strikeouts over 2.0 innings of work, removed after throwing his 63rd pitch of the afternoon. Anthony Veneziano replaced Fleming and struggled early, as the first three batters he faced reached, including a three-run homer from Mastrobuoni that tied the game up 4-4 in the bottom of the third inning.

The game did not remain tied for long, as the Storm Chasers answered with two runs in each the 4th and the 6th innings. In the top of the fourth inning, a John Rave sacrifice fly brought Pratto home, then Waters doubled in Brian O’Keefe for a 6-4 lead In the sixth inning, Alexander recorded his third hit on the day with a two-run double that plated Eaton and Rave and extended the lead to 8-4.

With run support, Veneziano earned the win with a strikeout over 3.0 innings of relief, only allowing the two runs in the third inning. Left-hander Austin Cox followed Veneziano in his 2024 Omaha debut and struck out one over 1.1 scoreless innings.

Iowa struck for two additional runs on two hits, a walk and hit batter to inch close in the bottom of the seventh, as it took three Storm Chaser pitchers to finish the inning. Cox faced the first two batters and got one out, then Steven Cruz faced the next four and only recorded one out, before Evan Sisk entered the game to work the final out. Sisk retired four of five batters he faced over 1.1 scoreless innings, with three strikeouts to bridge the game to the ninth.

Waters added a run of insurance in the top of the eighth, with a single that drove in Tyler Tolbert home for a 9-6 lead that held to be final.

Walter Pennington earned his first save of the season, pitching a scoreless bottom of the ninth with a pair of strikeouts to finish off Omaha's second straight win, a 9-6 victory over Iowa.

The Storm Chasers continue this week’s series against the Cubs at Principal Park Friday, May 3 with a 7:08 p.m. first pitch as right-handed pitcher Luis Cessa is slated for Omaha.