Timber Rattlers Outlast Kernels in 14-11 Shootout

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Wisconsin scored the final five runs Tuesday night, outlasting Cedar Rapids in an offensive showdown 14-11.

The Timber Rattlers got the offense going right away. In the top of the first inning, a Luis Peña single put a runner on for Andrew Fischer, who opened the scoring with a two-run home run.

Wisconsin added on in the second. A pair of walks put two on for Josiah Ragsdale, who plated both with a two-run double to double the Timber Rattlers' lead to 4-0.

The Kernels got on the board in the bottom of the second. Yasser Mercedes walked to begin the inning, then stole second and third. After Quinn McDaniel worked a walk, he attempted to steal second, and on the play Mercedes came into score to cut the deficit to 4-1.

In the top of the third, the Timber Rattlers respond. With two outs, a Josh Adamczewski double and an Eric Bitonti walk put two on in front of Daniel Dickinson, who cleared the bases with a two-run double to up the Wisconsin lead to 6-1.

Cedar Rapids closed the gap in the bottom of the inning. Brandon Winokur doubled to open the inning and scored a batter later on a Khadim Diaw RBI single to make it 6-2.

In the bottom of the fourth, a Jay Thomason walk, a Danny De Andrade single and a Marek Houston walk loaded the bases with no one out. The Kernels scored two, one on an error and one on a Winokur RBI single to get within two at 6-4.

Wisconsin punched back again in the top of the fifth. A pair of singles put two on with two out. On a groundball to second a run came home on an error following a fielder’s choice to lift the Timber Rattlers ahead 7-4. The next batter, Luis Castillo, then opened it up to 9-4 with a two-run home run.

This time it was the Kernels that had the answer. In the bottom of the sixth, a pair of walks put two on for Diaw, who scored a run with an RBI double. The next batter, Mercedes, plated a run with an RBI and reached on an error. A McDaniel single reloaded the bases for Rayne Doncon, who also picked up an RBI while reaching on an error to make it a 9-7 game. With the bases loaded, Thomason put Cedar Rapids on top, blasting a grand slam to right to give the Kernels an 11-9 lead.

But the lead was short-lived. In the top of the seventh, a single and a walk put a pair on for Luiyin Alastre, who doubled home a run to make it 11-10. The next batter, Fischer, put the Rattlers back in front, 12-11, with a two-run single. In the eighth, Bitonti put the game away with a two-run home run, setting Wisoncin ahead 14-11, the score that would be the final.

The loss drops the Kernels to 26-26 on the season and to 3-4 on the current 12-game homestand. The series with Wisconsin continues Wednesday at 12:05 with Dasan Hill on the mound, opposite Braylon Owens.