JOLIET, Ill. — The Schaumburg Boomers and Joliet Slammers opened a three-game mid-week series with an incredibly well-pitched contest that ended in a 1-0 victory for the Joliet Slammers in sudden death, the second sudden death game of the season for the Boomers and the first defeat.

Joliet opted to put the Boomers back on defense in sudden death after Jake Joyce had just worked around the international tie-breaker runner to keep the game scoreless. All-Star Phil Steering was the hero, recording his first hit of the game to score the winning run as the second batter of sudden death. The Boomers failed to score in the top of the 10th, leaving the bases loaded, and Joliet had the lead runner thrown out at third before Joyce posted a strikeout to send the game to sudden death.

Schaumburg managed just three hits in the game against the combination of Joliet All-Star Cole Cook and lefty reliever Tyler Jay. The pair combined for 10 shutout innings with 13 strikeouts. Cook worked seven and fanned nine. Aaron Glickstein was just as strong for the Boomers, tossing seven blank frames and allowing seven hits while punching out five. Joliet had just one runner reach third before sudden death. Dylan Stutsman and Kristian Scott tossed scoreless innings in front of Joyce, who suffered the loss. Scott struck out the side in the ninth. The pitching staff recorded 10 strikeouts.

The Boomers (31-22) continue the series with Joliet bright and early in the morning with a 10:05 am contest. RHP Luis Perez (2-3, 4.23) starts for the first time following the All-Star break in the early contest. The team will return home on July 21 to open a six-game homestand with a t-shirt giveaway and postgame fireworks. The first 1,000 fans receive a Boomers Feel the Boom T-shirt thanks to US Waterproofing, Blink Tees, and isolved. Visit boomersbaseball.com to secure your tickets to a game in the second part of the season before summer is gone or call 847-461-3695 to ensure you don’t miss out on the fun.