CornBelters Excel at the Plate, Defeating Dubois County in a Slugfest 10-6

July 30, 2025. – Normal, IL — The Normal CornBelters had themselves a 15-hit offensive
eruption and constant scoring production to defeat the Dubois County Bombers 10–6. Despite
trailing early, the CornBelters rallied in the middle innings to secure another key win in pursuit
of a playoff spot.

Dubois County jumped ahead in the second inning when Joaquin Hernandez roped a bases
clearing double, putting the Bombers up 3–0. But Normal quickly answered as Kannon Kleine
drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, and Max Hennemann followed with an RBI single to cut the
lead to 3–2 by the end of the second.

From there, the CornBelters’ bats came alive. In the third, Jack Novak singled in Jackson Stanek
to tie the game. Then in the fourth, Toby Thompson and Stanek each delivered RBI plays to give
Normal a 6–4 lead. Dubois County briefly responded with two runs in the fourth and sixth, but it
wasn’t enough to cool down Normal’s bats.

The turning point came in the fifth and sixth innings. Kleine struck again with a 2-run single,
followed by a three-run outburst in the sixth fueled by some Dubois County mistakes. Caleb
Royer walked in a run, Eli Kieser added an RBI fielder’s choice, and another run scored on a
wild pitch to push the CornBelters’ lead to 10–6.

Nick Krueger closed the game for Normal, pitching 2 shutout innings to finish the game. The
CornBelters bullpen held the Bombers to only two runs in five frames, allowing the offense’s
work to withhold a much-needed win.

With the win, the Normal CornBelters sit at 11-16, and gained a game on the Dubois County
Bombers, who sit at 10-14. The next game for the CornBelters will be an extremely important one, as they defend the Corn Crib against Dubois County once again, and with a win will overtake them in the standings to slot them in line for a playoff spot. First pitch for their next game will on July 30 at 6:30 p.m.