The Florence Freedom split a pair of well-pitched games with the Schaumburg Boomers Wednesday, taking game one 6-0 before falling in game two 2-1 in 10 innings.
Game One: Florence 6, Schaumburg 0
Jeremy Gooding was stellar once again for the Freedom, tossing a complete game shutout in a 6-0 victory.
Gooding scattered just four hits and one walk, while striking out five in completing his first shutout of the year. It was the first time this season that the Freedom secured a win in the opener of a doubleheader.
Florence did not have a hit in their first three innings, but broke through in the fourth. Andrew Godbold led off the frame by ripping a double to left-center and scored the first run of the game on a single by Josh Henderson. Henderson crossed the plate later in the inning when Vail bounced a single on the infield and the throw from the second baseman was arid.
In the sixth, the Freedom added some insurance for Gooding. Two hit batters and a walk loaded the bases with nobody out before two runners came home on a one-out single by Jordan Brower. On the very next pitch, Garrett Vail delivered a run-scoring single. Travis Weaver plated the sixth run with a two-out base hit later in the inning.
Godbold reached base all three times, including a double in the fourth, and scored two runs. Brower (two), Vail, Henderson, and Weaver all posted RBIs.
Josh Heddinger took the loss with four innings of two-run ball (one earned). Paul Kronenfeld and Matt Petrone both had doubles for the Boomers.
Game Two: Schaumburg 2, Florence 1
Schaumburg split the doubleheader by outlasting the Freedom 2-1 in 10 innings.
The Boomers plated the game’s first run on a sacrifice fly from Argenis Aldazoro in the third.
That’s the only run that came in on Patrick McGrath’s watch as the Freedom starter had his best appearance since coming off the disabled list. He tossed 5 1/3 innings, allowing four hits, one walk, and one run, while striking out two.
The Freedom rallied in the sixth inning, putting their first runner on third base in the ballgame. With Henderson on first, Newell served a looping single to right, placing runners on the corners with two away. Collins Cuthrell came up next and drew a walk, loading the bases with two outs. Evan Boyd struck out Brower to end the threat.
In the seventh, Shaun Cooper came up huge for the Freedom. As a pinch-hitter in just his fifth game with the team, Cooper launched a solo home run to left, tying the score at one and sending the game to extras.
The teams struggled on offense in extra innings. Neither team plated a run on the international rule in the ninth inning. In the tenth, the Boomers scored the winning run on a sacrifice fly by Kronenfeld and the Freedom failed to score in the bottom half of the inning.
Cooper was the offensive hero in his only at bat of the ballgame. The bullpen did not give up an earned run in 4 2/3 innings, while striking out seven.
The Freedom and Boomers complete their series Thursday. In a 7:05 p.m. first pitch, the Freedom will send Cody Gray (5-1, 3.05 ERA) to the hill against Schaumburg’s Kagen Hopkins (3-4, 2.85 ERA).
From Freedom Communications