Brakettes Drop Philly Series Finale 2-0

July 13, 2007 - The Brakettes fell to the Philadelphia Force Friday night in Allentown, PA, by a 2-0 margin. Brakettes' starter Candice Freel scattered five hits over six innings, as she faced the team she played for in 2006. Denise Denis reached base on a bunt single, making sure she hit safely in all four games of the series.

The Brakettes were victimized in the first inning by a bad bounce in left field, which skipped away from Allison Twarowski, and allowed Chelsea Spencer to score from first, as Jenna Hall pulled into second with a stand-up double. That 1-0 lead would stand until the fifth inning, when the Force would put another run on the board.

Sharonda McDonald singled for Philadelphia with one out in the fifth, bringing Spencer to the plate again. Spencer singled to right field, then advanced an extra base when Denise Denis misplayed the hop. McDonald moved to third, bringing up the slugging Hall. Much to the surprise of everyone in the stadium, Hall dropped down a perfect suicide squeeze bunt, which plated McDonald for a 2-0 lead. The sacrifice gave Hall both RBI on the evening for the Force.

Freel worked a 1-2-3 sixth inning to keep the Brakettes within striking distance, but the red and white also went down in order in the seventh, closing out the series. Freel pitched well for the Brakettes, despite the loss, although she gave up an uncharacteristic five walks. She struck out three Philadelphia batters. The Brakettes only managed three hits on the night, and just two baserunners reached scoring position. Mandie Fishback and Allison Twarowski accounted for the other two Brakette hits.

The Brakettes dropped three out of four in Philadelphia, but were hardly outclassed. Force starting pitcher Kristina Thorson proved to be the difference maker. She allowed only three hits in seven innings, striking out nine and walking none. She held the Brakettes scoreless in both of her starts this week. The Brakettes dropped to 36-3 with the loss, and will play a doubleheader Saturday night at DeLuca HOF Field in Stratford, CT at 7:00 PM, against the Topton (PA) VIP's.

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