Lights go out at QU Stadium, saddling Doggy Paddlers with 11th consecutive loss

QUINCY — Wandel Campana and Byron Blaise provided plenty of fireworks for the Quincy Doggy Paddlers on Saturday, but the Alton River Dragons rallied before the lights went out on Quincy’s 11th consecutive loss. The River Dragons escaped with a 9-8 win in six innings at QU Stadium.

In the top of the sixth inning, after the River Dragons scored to take a one-run lead, a bank of lights on the tower that hangs over the Doggy Paddlers bullpen down the third base line went out. The Doggy Paddlers failed to score in the bottom of the sixth, then after a brief delay, the game was called due to limited visibility in the section of the field normally lit up by those lights.

Campana hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the third to tie the game at 4, then Blaise followed Campana with his second home run in the last three games to give the Doggy Paddlers a 5-4 lead.

Quincy scored three more runs in the fourth to take an 8-4 lead, but that lead was short-lived. Kyle Campbell led off the fifth with his second home run of the game. Three of the next four batters reached base, then a Conner Freeze ground out followed by a two-out RBI double by Eli Hill tied the game at 8.

A Luke Melton RBI single in the top of the sixth gave the River Dragons a 9-8 lead.

The River Dragons (22-23, 11-8 second half) outhit the Doggy Paddlers 13-8. Eight of the nine players in the River Dragons’ lineup had a hit or an RBI.

Brady Kindhart and Kannon Kirk each had two hits for the Doggy Paddlers (14-29, 5-15 second half). Tommy Harrison reached base in all four of his plate appearances.

The Doggy Paddlers will face the O’Fallon Hoots at CarShield Field on Sunday before returning home on Tuesday to face the Clinton LumberKings. The teams will resume a July 11 game that was suspended prior to the start of the fifth inning before playing their regularly scheduled game at 6:30 p.m.