WATERLOO, Ia. --The Thunder Bay Border Cats scored six runs to take the lead in the bottom of the eighth, but couldn't hang on to defeat the Waterloo Bucks on Friday night.
An error by shortstop Zane Skansi allowed the winning run to cross the plate, part of a five-run eighth by the Bucks that keyed a wild 16-14 triumph that dropped the Border Cats (2-3) below .500 for the first time this season, the team playing its fifth straight away from home.
Ir was one of three errors charged to Skansi in the game, Thunder Bay making five miscues before all was said and done.
The Cats took a 4-0 lead in the second, but starter Peyton Leon was tagged for sixth in the bottom half of the inning, a sign of what was to come as the two teams traded the lead back and forth with crooked innings ruling the night.
Waterloo scored multiple runs in each of the second, fourth, seventh and eighth innings, while Thunder Bay scored two or more runs in the second, third and eighth.
Logan Johnstone was 2-for-5 with three RBI, while Skansi was 1-for-2, driving in three and scoring three times for Thunder Bay.
Michael Lippe was 3-for-6 with two doubles and four RBI to pace the 2-3 Bucks attack.
Jakub Amado (1-0) earned the win in relief for Waterloo, surrendering two runs on four hits and a walk, while Jacob Gajic (0-1) was tagged with the loss, giving up seven runs, five of them earned, on five hits and a walk.
Waterloo manager Darrell Handelsman set a new franchise mark, earning his 162nd career win. He managed the team from 1999 to 2002, rreturning this season to take the helm.
The Cats and Bucks hook up again on Saturday, with Caleb Bunch scheduled to get the start for Thunder Bay. The Border Cats will then have two days off before hosting the Duluth Huskies on Tuesday night in their 2023 home opener, the team's first game at Port Arthur Stadium in nearly four years.
