By JOHN BOHNENKAMP
The score may not look like it, but there was a point late in the game when the Burlington Bees put themselves in position to win in Wednesday’s 15-4 loss to the Clinton LumberKings at Community Field.
The Bees, who trailed 4-0 after 4 1/2 innings, got to within 5-3 heading into the seventh inning.
The bullpen, though, couldn’t keep Clinton in check. The LumberKings scored three runs in the seventh inning, one in the eighth, then tacked on six more runs in the ninth.
Colten Clarahan gave up the three seventh-inning runs. Nate Frese was charged with four earned runs on just two hits in one inning. Erick McKendry was charged with three runs in 2/3 of an inning.
The defeat was the second consecutive for the Bees, who dropped to 2-2 in the second-half and into a three-way tie for the Northwest Division’s second-half playoff berth. They have been outscored 33-12 in the two losses.
The Bees got their first run of the game with Colin Schmitke’s RBI single in the fifth inning. They scored two more in the sixth inning — Kooper Schulte and Caleb Siebers each drove in a run with singles — but after having runners on first and third with one out couldn’t cut any more out of the LumberKings’ margin.
Owen Nowak’s RBI groundout in the eighth inning provided the final Bees run.
Jaqsen Tejada (4-1) was the winning pitcher. Kaelen Clarkson (0-2) took the loss.
Photo: Burlington Bees second baseman Colin Schmitke tags out Clinton’s Drew Terpins, who was trying to steal second base in the second inning. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
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