By: Braeden Jones
JOLIET, IL – With both teams coming into this game on a 4-game losing streak, the Joliet Slammers (6-15) get the 9-1 home victory over the Schaumburg Boomers (12-10) on Tuesday.
After Slammers starting pitcher Ryan Daly almost threw an immaculate inning to end the top of the 1st with three straight strikeouts on Boomers batters, Joliet was the first to get on the board. Two singles set up an RBI double from Peyton Carr, which was immediately followed up by a 2-RBI single from Cam Suto. That was all the scoring the 1st inning had to offer as the home team took the 3-0 lead.
The Boomers could not get a hit in the top of the 2nd inning, which gave the Slammers the chance to build up the lead. After new Slammer addition Brett Stanley hit a single in his first at bat for his new team, Ian Battipaglia got a single to bring Stanley around to score in the bottom of the 2nd inning, bringing the score up to 4-0.
Daly’s no-hitter finally ended as Schaumburg’s Mitch Bonczkowski got a single to start the top of the 3rd inning. Cole Nelson followed up with a single of his own that scored Bonczkowski, putting the Boomers on the board. Daly was able to get out of the inning with no further damage, keeping the Slammers ahead with a score of 4-1.
There would be no scoring for the next few innings, and Daly would record 10 strikeouts to help Joliet hold their lead before being pulled after six innings.
In the bottom of the 7th inning, the Slammers would once again enter the scoring column. Battipaglia stole second and third base after being walked to set up an RBI single for Blake Berry. Carr got hit by a pitch to move Berry to second base, which allowed Suto to hit a single to bring Berry home.
Those two scores were dwarfed when Josh Phillips came up to the plate and hit a 3-run home run, marking the only home run of the game. That also ended up being the last scoring play of the match, and the Slammers the first of the three-game series they will play against the Boomers with a final score of 9-1.
After getting a much-needed win in front of their home crowd, the Slammers will be back Wednesday in hopes of beating the Boomers twice in a row at Slammers Stadium. Now on a 5-game losing streak after starting 12-5, Schaumburg will look to take game two against Joliet on Wednesday.
