FL Lake Erie Crushers

Crushers buried by four-run first

Published on July 27, 2014 under Frontier League (FL)
Lake Erie Crushers News Release


SCHAUMBURG, Ill. -- The Lake Erie Crushers fell into an early hole on Sunday afternoon, surrendering four runs in the first inning and dropped the series opener to the Schaumburg Boomers, 9-4.

The loss for the Crushers (33-28) marked their 10th straight loss in a series opener, while the victory for the Boomers (35-26) was their fourth in a row, and their first in four games against the Crushers this season.

Both teams scored in the first inning, but the Boomers plated four runs on a trio of hits to take a 4-1 lead after one, and never looked back.

Craig Hertler began the game with a double down the left field line, and came around to score on Anderson Hidalgo's infield single. The Boomers responded with four in the home half, as the first four batters reached and scored. Mark Nelson drove in the first run on a RBI single through the right side, and Gerard Hall drove in the second run on a sacrifice fly. Ty Nelson's groundout plated the next run, and a wild pitch scored Mark Nelson to end the inning.

Lake Erie came right back with a run in the top of the second. Adam Ford stroked a one out single, before stealing second and third. Ryan Hutchison then legged out an infield single to score Ford to bring the Crushers within two (4-2).

Schaumburg posted another crooked number in the bottom of the third. Nelson, Bobby Martin and Ryan McChesney hit three consecutive one out singles to start the rally. McChesney's single to right scored Nelson, and Jordan Dean's squeeze bunt allowed Martin to score. Later in the inning, Joe DePinto hit a run scoring double down the left field line to cap the big frame.

The Crushers scored two more runs in the top of the fifth. Hertler walked with one out, and made his way to third on a double down the line in left from Trevor Stevens. Andrew Davis then stroked a RBI single to left, and Hidalgo reached on a fielder's choice to score Stevens.

The Boomers answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth inning to pull away. McChesney and Dean started the inning with back-to-back singles. DePinto's groundout scored McChesney and Tyler Sciacca drove in the final run of the inning on a double to left.

Hunter Ackerman (3-1) scored the victory for the Boomers, allowing four runs on 10 hits while fanning five over six innings of action. Zac Treece (3-3) took the loss after allowing nine runs on 11 hits over 5.1 innings of work.

Hertler paced the Crushers with a 3-for-3 performance, and reached in all four trips to the plate, while scoring two of Lake Erie's runs. He's now reached in 14 consecutive games. Davis went 2-for-3 and has three straight multi-hit games. Hidalgo turned in a 1-for-4 performance with two RBIs and has now reached in nine straight games. Adam Ford also went 2-for-4.

The Crushers will begin a three-game series against the Schaumburg Boomers on Sunday afternoon. Right-hander Jason Wilson (6-3, 2.76) will throw for the Crushers, and the Boomers will counter with right-hander Eddie Cody (1-1, 3.04). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:30 PM.

The Lake Erie Crushers, the 2009 Frontier League Champions, and 2011 Frontier League Organization of the year, play ball at All Pro Freight Stadium, a 5,000 capacity stadium located in Avon, Ohio. The Frontier League is an independent baseball league with 14 teams operating throughout the Midwest. Season tickets for the 2014 season are on sale now! For more information on tickets, promotions and team news, visit the team website at www.LakeErieCrushers.com or call 440-934-3636.

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Frontier League Stories from July 27, 2014


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