Kane County Cougars fall in late rally, drop series to DockHounds

The Kane County Cougars (46-37) fell 5-4 to the Lake Country DockHounds (49-37) on Saturday in Geneva, dropping the series and moving to 46-38 on the season.

Reese Sharp turned in another strong outing, allowing just four hits and three runs —only one earned — over seven innings while striking out six. The DockHounds took a 1-0 lead in the second on a solo home run from Peter Zimmermann before adding two more runs in the sixth.

Kane County finally broke through in the seventh when Jairus Richards scored on a balk, cutting the deficit to 3-1. The Cougars then took advantage of a late opportunity in the eighth. After walks to Armond Upshaw and a single from Matt Bottcher put two runners aboard, Richards delivered again, crushing a 426-foot three-run homer to right field to give Kane County a 4-3 lead.

The Cougars couldn't hold on, though. Jake Gozzo (0-3) entered in the ninth looking for his league-leading 21st save but walked the bases loaded. Lake Country tied the game before a throwing error allowed the go-ahead run to score. The Cougars put a runner aboard in the bottom half, but Alan Carter (9) closed the door to secure the DockHounds' win.