Karl Craigie allowed an unearned run in the bottom of the eleventh, and the Florence Freedom, presented by Titan Mechanical Solutions, dropped the finale of a two-game series, 3-2, with the Washington Wild Things on Thursday night at UC Health Stadium.
Standing at second base in the top of the eleventh courtesy the International Tie-Breaker Rule, Shaine Hughes scored the eventual game-winning run for the Wild Things (35-53) when Stephen Lohr shot a two-out single to left, giving Washington a, 3-2, lead over the Freedom (51-37).
Florence saw both the potential tying and winning runs reach scoring position before Things closer Zach Strecker (2-5), who tossed three shut-out innings in relief, closed the door on a series split with a punch-out of Trevor Craport.
Strecker landed the win, his second of the year, and handed the Freedom their fifteenth one-run loss in regular-season play.
Allowing the unearned run in the eleventh, Florence closer, Karl Craigie (5-3) took the loss, but saw his ERA drop to 0.50 following his two innings of relief in the contest.
The Freedom started the scoring in the bottom of the second.
Two free passes by Wild Things starter, John Havird, came back to haunt him when Austin Wobrock delivered an RBI-single to center that scored Isaac Benard from second for a 1-0 lead.
The visitors delivered a timely response facing right-hander, Zak Spivy in the third.
Drew Bene sent a sacrifice-fly to right as Washington evened the score at 1.
Spivy allowed another run in the fifth, as J.R. Davis touched the hurler for a two-out RBI-single, propelling the Things to their first lead of the night at, 2-1.
Havird would step aside after 5.1 one-run innings, handing the ball to righty, Jesus Balaguer with one out in the sixth.
A snake-bit season continues for the Florence starter, Spivy, who took a no-decision, despite netting his fourth quality-start. The right-hander turned in a final line of 6.1 innings, two earned runs allowed on six hits, with one walk and two whiffs.
Rallying to stalemate the score at 2 in the bottom of the eighth, the Freedom sent seven men to the plate to face two different pitchers.
Balaguer toed the rubber first, but was promptly pulled in favor of southpaw, B.J. Sabol when Connor Crane worked a lead-off walk.
Craport bounced a one-out single over first two batters later, putting runners on the edges for Jackson Pritchard.
Pritchard proceeded to lay down a safety squeeze, Sabol attempted to get the out at home, to no avail as the score deadlocked again.
Three runners were left stranded for the Freedom, who left 17 men on base in total in defeat.
Florence travels to Evansville for a trio of bouts with the West Division leading Otters at Bosse Field.
The Freedom and Otters will have a 6:35 p.m. CDT first pitch.
Florence Freedom
