Offense explodes as Ramblers pummel Cascade

The Ramblers put behind a frustrating loss to Dubuque in the Rickardsville Tournament and won going away over Cascade in Peosta on Tuesday evening. A hot Cascade team that has enjoyed a resurgent season could not recover from Key West's six-run second inning as the Ramblers (11-10) won 13-3 in six innings.

Cascade actually jumped out to a 2-0 lead after two innings, but Key West then struck with a big inning that set the tone for the game. Eleven Ramblers came to the plate in the second as part of a six-run, four-hit frame that included two walks and two hit batters. Tanner Denlinger and Chris Briggs both notched RBI doubles to help get the Rambler offense back on track.

Key West then added three runs in the third, one in the fourth, two in the fifth and one in the sixth to end the game by the 10-run rule. The Ramblers tallied at least one run in every inning except for the first in support of starting pitcher Matt Lozano (pictured).

Dan Spain (2-for-3, one run, one RBI), Denlinger (2-for-4, three runs, two RBIs) and Matt Knabel (2-for-4, one run, two RBIs) each recorded two hits for Key West. Briggs went 1-for-1 with three walks and three RBIs.

Lozano threw all six innings move to 4-1 while picking up his third complete game of the season. He allowed three earned runs on seven hits and a walk. He struck out eight, bumping his team leading punch out total to 47 in 41.2 innings.

Both McCullough (3-for-3) and Dan Lynch (2-for-3) registered multiple hits for visiting Cascade.

The Ramblers have now scored 10 or more runs on seven occasions this season. On the other hand, Key West has been held to two runs or less seven times.

The Ramblers are back in action on Friday night in the first round of the Cascade Tournament. Key West will challenge Bellevue with first pitch slated for 8:30 p.m.

Ramblers climb above .500

Surprisingly, Sunday marked the first time all season that the Ramblers have been above .500 overall. Key West pounded both East Dubuque (12-2 on Saturday) and Placid (13-3 on Sunday) to push its record to 10-9. The win over East Dubuque advanced the Ramblers to the quarterfinals of the Rickardsville Tournament, while the victory over Placid bumped Key West's Prairie League record to 5-2.

Four Ramblers tallied at least two hits as Key West won decisively in the first round at Rickardsville. Catcher Jose Stelluti (pictured) led the way with a 3-for-3 effort that included a pair of RBIs. Meanwhile, Chris Briggs ended a power drought by drilling a two-run homer (team-leading second homer) in the third inning that gave Key West a 4-2 lead.

The Ramblers put the game well out of reach with a seven-run fourth inning that featured an RBI double from Briggs and run-scoring hits by Tim Carty, Matt Knabel, Stelluti and Dan Spain.

The outburst helped make a winner out of lefty starting pitcher Matt Lozano. He threw all five innings in the run-rule shortened affair to move his mark to 3-1. He allowed two runs (both earned) on seven hits and a walk while striking out two.

Key West 13, Placid 3 (7 innings)

The Ramblers continued the weekend run-scoring binge by clubbing Placid in another game decided by a run rule. Key West wasted little time in jumping out to a 4-0 lead by batting around in the first inning that was aided largely by the wildness of Placid pitching and shaky defense.

The Ramblers tacked on two more runs in the second and four in the third for a comfortable 10-1 advantage. Both Spain and shortstop Andrew Redman turned in three-hit days in what was Redman's first start this season other than on the mound.

Left fielder Cory Davidson stayed hot, connecting for a double and a triple to fuel a pair of RBIs. Trent Bollman made his Rambler debut and went 2-for-2 while reaching base in all four plate appearances.

Spain took the ball on the mound and navigated six innings despite giving up six hits and five walks. He flashed outstanding stuff as evidenced by his 10 strikeouts. He got his first win of the season.

Key West has now scored 10 or more runs six times this season. The Ramblers are averaging 6.2 runs per game through 19 contests. They have now won five of six games, during which they have out-scored opponents 39-18.

Up Next: The Ramblers get another shot at rival Dubuque on Tuesday night in the quarterfinals of the Rickardsville Tournament. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. from Rickardsville. Dubuque advanced to the quarterfinals by defeating Epworth 7-0 on Saturday night. Mark Hennessy pitched a seven-inning complete game shutout for the Blues. With Hennessy throwing on Saturday, Aaron Saeugling would appear to be the likely starting pitcher for Dubuque on Tuesday. Key West will counter with ace Andrew Redman.

Carty and Spain selected to semi-pro all-star game

Both Tim Carty and Dan Spain will represent the Ramblers in the 26th annual Telegraph Herald Semi-Pro All-Star Game. Carty and Spain will both hold down spots in the starting lineup for the Eastern Iowa Hawkeye League, as announced on Tuesday. The game will be played Saturday, July 13 at 6:30 p.m. at A.J. Spiegel Park in Peosta.

At last season's all-star contest, Spain took home MVP honors after collecting a pair of hits in a 13-6 victory over the Prairie League at Cascade's Legion Field. Chris Briggs and Cory Davidson also appeared in the all-star game for Key West in 2012. In addition, both Briggs and Davidson garnered selections in the 2011 all-star game along with former Rambler Jared Munson.

ALL-STAR ROSTERS

Eastern Iowa Hawkeye League

Coach: Jeff Hoerner, Dubuque

P: Russ Bolibaugh, Dyersville

C: Ben Ogden, Worthington

1B: Aaron Wulfekuhle, Dubuque

2B: Brian Miller, Farley

3B: Tim Carty, Key West

SS: Dan Spain, Key West

LF: Noah Mahlik, Dubuque

CF: Nathan Hall, Rickardsville

RF: Mitch Monk, Monticello

DH: Tim Andrews, Cascade

Reserves:

Roamn Hummel, Cascade

Andy Danna, Dubuque

Austin Brown, Dyersville

Ben Zitelman, Dyersville

Andy Seabrooke, Farley

Travis Olson, Farley

Connor Grant, Rickardsville

Eric Banworth, Rickardsville

Prairie League

Coach: Gary McAndrew, Peosta

P: Pete Bonifas, Bellevue

C: Matt McCullough, Bernard

1B: Brett Featherston, Epworth

2B: Ben Urbain, Balltown

3B: Chet Knake, Bellevue

SS: David Rodriguez, Bernard

LF: Ryan Lehmann, Peosta

CF: Bill Albee, East Dubuque

RF: Ryan Jantsch, Zwingle

DH: Travis Lyons, Zwingle

Reserves:

Steve McDonough, Balltown

Jared Koos, Bellevue

Carlo Rivera, Bernard

Kyle Harris, East Dubuque

Jaime Ballesteros, Epworth

Aaron Hopson, Peosta

Zack Brautigam, Peosta

Shawn Swenson, Placid

Bizarre play pushes Ramblers to victory over Farley

A soft grounder to the right of the pitcher's mound proved to be the most important play in the Ramblers' 6-2 victory over Farley on Sunday afternoon at Farley Park. Key West (8-9) won for the third time in the last four games, riding the dominant right arm of starting pitcher Andrew Redman (4-0, 1.08 ERA) once again.

Farley actually edged in front 1-0 with an unearned run in the top of the fourth, but the Ramblers quickly answered with four runs in the bottom half. After Gabe Wingert's (pictured) sacrifice fly knotted the game, Key West struck for three runs on a single play thanks to several Farley defensive miscues.

With two out and two on, Key West right fielder Austin Bradley hit a dribbler down the first base line that Farley pitcher Matt McKinney fielded and fired over the first baseman's head. Chris Briggs scored easily while Matt Knabel chugged around third and trotted home as the throw to the plate sailed over the catcher's head. The speedy Bradley then sprinted to the plate as another errant throw missed the mark. Suddenly the Ramblers led 4-1.

The three-run lead provided plenty of cushion for Redman, who moved to 12-1 in his last 13 starts. The powerful right-hander did not give up a single earned run in seven innings. He limited Farley to four hits and struck out nine while not issuing any free passes.

Farley mounted a rally in the eighth with a run to get within 4-2. Kenny Capesius, who entered the game in the seventh, cracked a two-run single off of reliever Will Petrosky to give the Ramblers some more breathing room. Capesius delivered the two-out base hit through the left side of the infield in the bottom of the eighth, capping all scoring for the day.

Lefty Matt Lozano then completed the victory with a 1-2-3 ninth. Lozano got the save for his work in the eighth and ninth innings. He and Redman combined for a dozen strikeouts.

Redman has been near unhittable once again in 2013, limiting opposing hitters to a .143 batting average in 25 innings this season. He has allowed only 13 hits and three walks all year.

Wingert finished 2-for-3 in his seventh career game with Key West. Briggs got back on track with a 3-for-4 effort that included a pair of runs.

The Ramblers will have nearly a week off before returning to action on Saturday, July 6 when the Rickardsville Tournament gets underway. Key West will play East Dubuque at 6 p.m. in the first round at Rickardsville.

Key West draws Bellevue in Cascade Tourney

The Ramblers will play Bellevue in the first round of the 67th annual Cascade Tournament on Friday, July 19. Game time is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. The two teams have met just once so far this season with Bellevue winning 4-2 in a Prairie League game.

View the complete bracket below.

Ramblers fall hard to Cascade

The Ramblers failed to carry over the momentum they gained from Sunday's thrilling extra-inning victory over Rickardsville, falling 8-0 to Cascade in the quarterfinals of the Worthington Tournament on Wednesday night. Key West (7-9) had hoped to defend its 2012 Worthington title.

Cascade got on top right away with Tom Andrews solo homer in the first off of Rambler starter Aaron Collins. The Reds tacked on at least one run in every inning on the way to a comfortable victory. Roamn Hummel added another solo shot with a blast over the center field wall in the third.

Key West struggled all night at the plate against Cascade's Brett Poffenburger. The Ramblers were limited to two hits in the six-inning, run-rule shortened game. Poffenburger allowed just one runner to advance into scoring position all evening.

Collins fired the first two innings before being lifted for reliever Dan Spain. Kenny Capesius also appeared on the mound late in the game for Key West.

The Ramblers will return to action on Sunday when they host Farley in a Prairie League game. First pitch is set for 1:30 p.m. from Farley Park.

Rickardsville bracket pairs Ramblers with East Dubuque

The 35th annual Rickardsville Tournament bracket, announced Sunday evening, matches Key West with East Dubuque in the first round of the 16-team bracket. The Ramblers will begin play in the tournament on Saturday, July 6 at 6 p.m.

The entire tournament will play out July 5 - 14. The championship game will be held Sunday, July 14 at 6:30 p.m. Check out the complete bracket below.

Key West has yet to play East Dubuque this season. A game scheduled for earlier this season between the two teams was wiped out by rain.