Boomers fall in extras to Crushers, 5-4

The Schaumburg Boomers rallied from a 3-0 deficit but dropped a 5-4 11-inning decision to the Lake Erie Crushers in the first game of a three-game set on Tuesday night.

Lake Erie grabbed a 3-0 lead with a run in the second and two in the fourth against Schaumburg starter Brett Mabry. The Boomers broke through for a pair of runs in the sixth. Michael Valadez drove home a run with a bases-loaded groundout.

Paul Kronenfeld scored on a wild pitch. Kronenfeld evened the game with a solo homer in the eighth off Lake Erie closer Trevor Longfellow. Ino Patron singled home the go-ahead run in the 11th before Lake Erie notched a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the winning for the win.

Mabry tossed six innings and allowed just 3 runs in a no-decision. The start marked the second quality start of the season by the Boomers. Dexter Price took the loss.

Derek DeYoung and Patrick Dolan each worked two scoreless frames. Kronenfeld picked up a pair of hits to pace the offense. All four games this season have been decided by 2 runs or less.

The series continues with a quick turnaround. Right-hander Josh Heddinger starts in a 10:05 a.m. Wednesday game against right-hander Fernando Gallegos.