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CRESTWOOD, IL – After dropping a tight 6-5 contest in Joliet, Wednesday morning, the ThunderBolts returned home and fell in game two of their doubleheader 5-1 at Standard Bank Stadium Wednesday night.

Riley Krane’s RBI triple in the fourth inning got the game one scoring started for the ThunderBolts (11-22). He would score on a Tim Zier single to make it 2-0.

Entering the sixth inning, Jake Welch, who finished with 11 strikeouts, had retired 13 consecutive batters. He hit Dom Iero to start the sixth for Joliet (18-16) before Ridge Hoopii-Haslam hit an RBI triple. Danny Zardon singled home Hoopii-Haslam to tie the score.

The first four batters reached for Joliet in the sixth and they all scored as Justin Garcia and Hoopii-Haslam picked up RBI hits.

The ThunderBolts fought back as Axel Johnson homered in the eighth. After two more hits, Ronnie Healy doubled both runs in to make the score 6-5, but that was as close as the Bolts would get.

Corey Kimber (1-2) pitched a perfect inning of relief and earned the win while Joel Toribio (0-1) allowed four runs without recording an out for the loss. Keegan Long picked up his eighth save.

Game two began with a Joliet first-inning run. Two walks and a Travis Bolin single made it 1-0. London Lindley extended the lead twice, reaching base in the third and fifth innings, stealing three bases and scoring on a sacrifice fly and an error, respectively.

The Bolts cut into the 3-0 lead with fifth-inning doubles from Blair Beck and Jonathan McCray. That was all they would get as Ottavio Dottolo pitched four innings out of the bullpen, allowing only one baserunner for his first career save.

The Slammers scored two more in the eighth on a Garcia single to cap the scoring.

Spencer Medick (1-0) struck out ten over five innings in his first start of the year and Zac Westcott (2-5) was a tough-luck loser, striking out nine and allowing just two earned runs over seven innings. 

The ThunderBolts and Slammers conclude their four-game set with another doubleheader Thursday evening in Joliet. Game one will pit the Bolts’ Connor Bach (0-0, 6.00) against the Slammers’ Duke von Schamann (4-1, 2.72). First pitch is slated for 5:05 and the game will be broadcast on WXAV 88.3 FM and wxav.com.

Game One Box Score

Game Two Box Score