Border Cats salvage split on extra-inning miscue

THUNDER BAY -- Jordan Gillerman must have stuffed his back pockets full of lucky rabbits’ feet.

The Thunder Bay Border Cats third baseman hit a lazy 11th-inning, two-out popup that should have stretched the scheduled seven-inning second half of a doubleheader beyond the one o’clock hour, the potential winning run stranded on third yet again.

But instead St. Cloud Rox shortstop Brett Pope lost it in the lights, the ball falling to the ground allowing a surprised Mitch Bigras to trot home to give the Cats a 3-2 win and a twin-bill split against the winningest team in the Northwoods League this summer.

Five Thunder Bay relievers tossed eight innings of no-hit ball to close the game out, the last St. Cloud hit coming in the third when Angelo Altavilla’s base hit plated Mason Mamarella, putting the Rox up 2-1 at the time.

Ben Hoffman, Anthony Paesano, Thunder Bay’s Tyler Moskalyk, Vinny Santarsiero and Bobby Fulkerson, who was credited with the victory, combined to walk one batter while striking out nine in support of starter Patrick Boyle.

Boyle left after three innings, allowing four hits and a pair of unearned runs.

St. Cloud starter Shelby Lackey lasted five innings, giving up both Thunder Bay scoring plays.

Bigras opened the scoring on a wild pitch in the second. Joe Gellenbeck doubled to open the sixth and advanced to third on a ball in the dirt, coming home on a Gui Gingras single.

Thunder Bay outhit the Rox 15-4.

The Cats dropped the opener, a makeup of a rainout earlier this season, 6-3.

St. Cloud scored four in the fifth against Thunder Bay starter Joey Burris to erase a 3-1 Border Cats lead, adding an insurance run in the sixth.

Denis Karas and Luke Ringhofer each hit solo shots for the visitors.

Riley Bernsdorf grounded into a run-scoring double play in the second to put the Cats on the board. Jordan Gillerman scored on a Bobby Honeyman single in the second to give the Border Cats (11-17) an early 2-0 lead.

Burris suffered the loss, giving up three runs on five hits before departing with one out in the sixth,. Gillerman led the way with a pair of RBI for the Cats.