Boomers lose 5-4 in series opener

The Schaumburg Boomers allowed 4 first-inning runs and could not rally Tuesday in a 5-4 series-opening defeat at the hands of the Florence Freedom.

Starter Kagen Hopkins, who had his outing moved up a day due to an illness on the staff, retired the first two batters of the contest before the next five reached base. Florence sent eight men to the plate in the first inning and raced to a 4-0 lead. The Boomers attempted to rally, plating 2 in the bottom of the inning. Kyle Ruchim led off by reaching on an error and scored on a wild pitch. Ryan O'Malley later singled home David Harris with 2 outs. Trailing 5-2, the Boomers scored twice in the ninth on RBI singles from Zack Weigel and Josh Gardiner but could not push across the equalizer.

Hopkins settled down, working 6 innings and retiring nine in a row at one point, but took the loss. Kit Fowler worked the final three frames out of the bullpen and struck out 6. Harris finished with 4 hits, a double, a stolen base and a run scored. Harris has hit safely in 15 straight. Gardiner also logged a pair of hits as the Boomers finished with 12.