The Sioux Falls Canaries put their power bats to use early and often as they walked off on the Gary SouthShore RailCats 6-5.
They hit four balls over the wall, three of which were solo shots, to salvage a win in the final game of the three-game series.
Like in the two games before, the scoring started in the very first inning. Michael Woodworth got the RailCats on the board right away as he drew an errant throw on a back-pick after his triple to give the RailCats an early one-run advantage.
However, the Canaries responded in their first turn at bat. Jabari Henry smashed a two-run home run, the first of the game for Sioux Falls, to end the inning in front 2-1.
It took just two innings for the Canaries to add to their brand-new lead. Wyatt Ulrich led off the bottom of the third by doubling and advanced to third on a Kona Quiggle flyout. With two outs in the frame, Henry stepped up again as he singled to left field, providing the hosts an early insurance run.
Down two runs, the RailCats fought back in the top of the fourth. Jesus Marriaga sparked a two-out rally when he smacked a two-out single and stole second base. Zach Racusin then placed a base hit into shallow center field to lower his team’s deficit to one.
The Canaries made that run back up in their half of the inning. Trey Michalczewski knocked the first pitch he saw past the right-field wall to restore the Sioux Falls lead at two.
After the Canaries turned to their bullpen in the top of the sixth, the RailCats offense sprang into action. Daniel Lingua kicked things off through his one-out single and stolen base, his 14th of the season. Marriaga slashed a single to score Lingua before he and Racusin executed a hit-and-run to perfection to tie the score.
Just one inning later, the RailCats took their lead back. With two outs in the top of the seventh, Javeyan Williams launched a no-doubt home run to push the RailCats ahead 5-4.
However, Sioux Falls was not yet done hitting home runs. Gavin LaValley led off the eighth with a solo shot of his own, leveling the game at five.
Following a scoreless top of the ninth, the Canaries needed just one batter to end the game in walk-off fashion. The leadoff batter, Ulrich, blasted a home run over the right-center field fence to seal the victory.
Despite the loss, the RailCats have won each of their last two series on the road, taking six of those seven games in the process.
The ‘Cats return to The Steel Yard tomorrow to kick off a six-game homestand when they host the Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks at 6:45 p.m. All the action will be streamed on www.aabaseball.tv, 95.9 WEFM, and the Gary SouthShore RailCats Broadcast Network through the Mixlr app.
