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Sauget, Ill. – St. Louis native Sasha Keubel (1-2) came through for Gateway with a terrific four-hit performance in six innings on the mound as the Gateway Grizzlies (8-6) beat the Florence Freedom on Saturday evening at GCS Ballpark, 6-2.
Freedom (5-8) starter Zach Isler (1-1) allowed just one hit through his first three innings, including a double play to end the third. Keubel went just as well through the third inning, until the game took a strange turn for both sides in the fourth.
In the top of the fourth, Richard Seigel reached first base after catcher’s interference called on Tyler Tewell. The Grizzlies would then make three errors on three consecutive batters, which led to a pair of runs scoring. Keubel would work out of the inning without allowing an earned run as the Freedom jumped on top, 2-0.
In the bottom half of the inning, Cody Livesay reached on an error by Freedom shortstop Travis Weaver. After another single, Ben Waldrip laced a base hit to drive in Livesay and put the Grizzlies on the board. Blake Brown then stepped in and laced an RBI double to tie the game at 2-2. The Grizzlies took a 3-2 edge on an RBI groundout from Vin Guglietti.
Tyler Tewell added on to the lead with his third home run of the season over the right field wall to give Gateway a 4-2 lead. Making his first start in more than a week, Waldrip continued the scoring eighth with a two-run homer. The blast was Waldrip’s first of 2016.
The Gateway bullpen continued their terrific work with three more scoreless innings on Saturday evening, lowering the unit’s total ERA to 1.94.
Gateway and Florence will square off in the rubber game of their three-game set on Sunday. First pitch is at 6:05 p.m.
