Shortstop Dan Spain homered, doubled and drove in a pair of runs to help catapult Key West (19-4) to its fifth-consecutive win. The latest victory came by a 4-3 decision over Dubuque in the first round of the 67th annual Worthington Tournament on Tuesday night. The Ramblers are now 8-2 this season in tournament action.
Key West got off to a quick start against Blues starting pitcher Mark Hennessey. Spain connected for a solo homer (16th career) to left center in the top of the first. The Ramblers used the long ball again in the second when catcher Chad Crabill went deep for a two-run shot. Four batters later Spain sent Ben Oglesby to the plate with an RBI double.
Despite a sloppy bottom of the second that let in three Dubuque runs, Key West never relinquished the lead. Neither team scored over the final five frames. Anthony Ruden fired the first four innings and got the win for the Ramblers. He was relieved by Nick Woltkamp, who tossed three scoreless innings to pick up his first save of the season.
Woltkamp was aided by stellar defensive plays turned in by both first baseman Chris Briggs and second baseman Andrew Redman. With two outs and a runner on third in the bottom of the fifth, Briggs made a diving stab moving to his left to preserve the one-run lead. Then in the seventh, Redman made a sprawling grab in right center to rob Aaron Sauegling of a leadoff hit.
Seven of the nine Rambler starters had at least one hit on Tuesday. Spain went 2-for-4 to lead the attack and help push Key West to 3-0 versus Dubuque in 2015.
The Ramblers' active five-game win streak includes victories over Placid, Worthington, Farley, East Dubuque and Dubuque. Three of the five wins have been decided by a single run. Key West is 5-1 in one-run games this season.
Up next for the Ramblers is a Worthington Tournament quarterfinal tilt with Farley on Thursday (June 25). First pitch is slated for 8:30 p.m. The two sides have met once this season with Key West winning 1-0 in 12 innings on June 17.
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