Quad Cities Trounces Wisconsin in Series-Leveling Win
Appleton, Wisconsin – The Quad Cities River Bandits matched their largest victory of the season on Friday, as they beat the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers at Fox Cities Stadium 10-1 to even their six-game series at two wins apiece. While River Bandits’ southpaw Frank Mozzicato opened his start with four-straight scoreless
Appleton, Wisconsin – The Quad Cities River Bandits matched their largest victory of the season on Friday, as they beat the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers at Fox Cities Stadium 10-1 to even their six-game series at two wins apiece.
While River Bandits’ southpaw Frank Mozzicato opened his start with four-straight scoreless innings, Quad Cities’ bats used the longball to build an early lead against Wisconsin’s starter Will Rudy. After Carter Jensen opened the scoring with a solo home run in the third, Spencer Nivens launched a three-run shot in the fourth—the outfielder’s first as a River Bandit.
Although Rudy departed after the second home run, Quad Cities wasn’t done in the frame and took a 6-0 lead on Trevor Werner’s bases loaded walk and a sacrifice-fly off the bat of Carson Roccaforte.
The centerfielder would then strike with the glove in the fifth, as Roccaforte robbed Eduarqui Fernandez of extra-bases with a leaping catch against the outfield wall. However, the Bandits’ shutout bid would end with the very next batter, as Jesus Chirinos took Mozzicato deep for a solo homer to trim the Bandits’ lead to 6-1.
The blast would wind up the Rattlers’ only run of the game. After Mozzicato completed his fifth and final frame, Oscar Rayo held the mound for the final 4.0 innings of the contest and allowed just three base runners over the scoreless effort.
Brett Squires’ RBI-double tacked on Quad Cities’ seventh run in the eighth and not only extended the first baseman’s multi-hit streak to five games, but ended Wisconsin reliever Aaron Rund’s scoreless inning streak at 11.0 innings.
Run-scoring singles from Omar Hernadnez and Jack Pineda put the Bandits up by eight in the ninth before Squires drove in another tally—this time a sac-fly for the 10-1 lead.
Despite recording just one strikeout, Mozzicato (3-4) yielded just four base runners and secured his third win of the season for Quad Cities, while Rudy (1-5) allowed four runs and a season-high four walks over his 3.0-inning start. Rayo (1) earned a 12-out, two-strikeout save for his first of the year.
On Saturday, the River Bandits will look to win three-straight for the first time since April and send Henry Williams (2-1, 3.56) to the mound against Wisconsin’s Yujanyer Herrera (2-1, 4.43). First pitch at Fox Cities Stadium is set for 6:40 p.m.