CRESTWOOD, IL – The Gateway Grizzlies jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first three innings and cruised to a 10-2 win over the Windy City ThunderBolts at Standard Bank Stadium Saturday night.
The Grizzlies (30-31) wasted little time in establishing a lead. Cody Livesay led off the first with a walk, stole second and moved to third on an error. Craig Massoni singled him home for a 1-0 lead.
They doubled the lead with back-to-back two-out hits in the second. Zach Lavy doubled and Logan Davis picked up an RBI on a single.
The third inning chased Clay Chapman from the game as Gateway loaded the bases with three straight two-out walks. Blake Brown cleared the bases with a double and scored on a Ben Waldrip single to make the score 6-0.
The ThunderBolts (28-31) fought back with two runs in the bottom of the third. Johnny Eierman and Blair Beck opened the frame with doubles to get on the board. After Beck was caught stealing, Taylor Smart singled and Corey Bass doubled him in.
The Bolts went on to load the bases in the fifth, bringing the tying run to the plate, but could not score.
Gateway put it away in the sixth. After a 43-minute rain delay, they put up four more runs on two walks and three hits. Livesay hit a two-run single, Seth Heck drove in a run on a single and Massoni secured his second RBI on a fielder’s choice.
The Gateway bullpen held the ThunderBolts without a hit over the final four innings.
Will Landsheft (4-5) allowed two runs in five innings and took the loss. Chapman (6-4) was removed after a season-low 2.2 innings and allowed five earned runs for the loss.
The rubber match of the series will be played Sunday evening at Standard Bank Stadium. It is Standard Bank Family Day and fans will be allowed on the field to play catch and get autographs after the game. Tyler Murphy (2-3, 3.75) will get the start for the Bolts against Gateway’s Vince Molesky (3-5, 3.48). First pitch is scheduled for 5:05 and the game broadcast can be heard on WXAV 88.3 FM and wxav.com.
Box Score
