ORLANDO (July 3, 2011) - The Orlando Freedom defeated the Sanford River Rats 4-3 in a Sunday evening contest. The Freedom collected 10 hits. Starting pitcher Ronald Schreurs (Daytona St.) struck out 10. Matt Mattone (Palm Beach St.) hit his third home run of the season. But none of these were the biggest number of the game.
In fact, the biggest number came in the form of a goose egg. The Freedom pitching staff walked zero River Rat hitters in the game, a feat the club had yet to accomplish on the season. No walks led to quick innings, low pitch counts and an all-around solid performance by the Orlando pitching staff, especially by Schreurs.
The left-handed starter was nothing short of dominant in the outing, fanning 10 in seven innings of work, allowing just four hits and a single unearned run.
“I was definitely more relaxed today,” Schreurs said of his presence on the mound.
Head Coach Scott Makarewicz echoed this sentiment.
“Tonight he came out and made all the adjustments and pounded the strike zone,” Makarewicz said of the starter. “He’s smooth and has a big presence about himself. He just jumps right on top of you and still throws strikes.”
The run came in the first inning when the Rats’ leadoff hitter, Alex Mendez (South Florida), began with a hit up the middle. Mendez then took second on an error, third on a wild pitch and scored on another wild pitch.
That would be the extent of the damage Schreurs would allow. The starter retired the next 12 hitters in a row to cruise through the first four innings. Unfortunately, the Freedom were contained as well in the early stages.
Orlando knotted things up in the fourth inning, when Matt Frank (Jacksonville) drew a one-out walk. AJ Mackey (Gulf Coast CC) followed with a double, before Robbie Haben pushed a ground out to short to bring in Frank.
The Freedom took their first lead in the sixth when Mattone led off the inning with the at-bat of the game. Mattone worked a full count by fighting off several good pitches by starter Brandon Cowan (LMU). Eleven pitches into the at-bat, Mattone hit a towering shot that just cleared the left field wall.
“Those are so exciting,” Makarewicz said. “When a guy gets over to that seven to nine (pitches) mark, as a hitter your confidence level goes through the roof. If the guy gets it even remotely close you’re going to crush it, and that’s what he did.”
Three batters later, Mackey hit his second double of the game to bring home Chris Suto (Lake Sumter CC) and push the lead to 3-1.
Schreurs completed his stellar outing in the seventh, fittingly, striking out the final batter of the inning on another 11 pitch at-bat that saw the lefty throw his 103rd pitch and possibly best fastball of the night.
“I was just more comfortable with my fastball today,” Schreurs said. “I was really confident today. Not to say I didn’t trust any of my stuff, but the fastball was my best.”
The Rats were not resigned to go quietly in the contest, however, picking up two runs in the eighth to tie the score. The Freedom responded quickly.
With one out in the bottom of the eighth, Suto launched a double into left-center to start the rally. Frank immediately followed with a single to bring home Suto and give Orlando its final lead of the game.
Ed Brandsema (Montevallo) came in to close out the game, working through a leadoff single to earn his second save on the year. Josh Larson (Santa Fe) pitched the eighth to pick up his first win of the season.
In total, the Freedom pitching staff allowed just three runs on eight hits, striking out 13, and most importantly perhaps, walking none.
Four Orlando hitters collected multiple hits, Mackey leading the way with two doubles to go with Mattone’s home run. Suto came around to score twice and Frank brought home the winning run. It was a total team effort for the club.
The Freedom have a chance to begin their first win streak on the year in the holiday contest against the Winter Haven Loggerheads. The club remains at home Monday, July 4 at Orel Hershiser Field. Game time slated for 5 pm.
Jake Snyder (Marshall University)