The River City Rascals dropped their series opener to the Schaumburg Boomers by a score of 3-1 on Monday night. Quincy Nieporte had four hits, including a home run and two RBIs, for the Boomers, while Andrew Penner recorded three hits for the Rascals in a losing effort.
After neither team scored in the first three innings, Nieporte led-off the bottom of the fourth with a solo shot, and Dylan Jones added an RBI single later in the frame. The Boomers took a 3-0 lead on an RBI single from Nieporte in the seventh.
The Rascals recorded three straight hits with one out in the eighth, including an RBI double from Trevor Achenbach. With runners on second and third, the Rascals trailing 3-1, Darrell Thompson came out of the Boomers bullpen to retire the next two hitters and end the threat. Connor Eller retired the side in order in the ninth, getting two strikeouts, to seal the win and earn his league-leading 17th save of the season.
Aaron Rozek (5-3) earned the win for Schaumburg, allowing just a single run over 7 1/3 innings. He struck out seven without issuing a walk. Taylor Ahearn (2-2) suffered the hard-luck loss for the Rascals, going seven innings while allowing three runs, one walk, and striking out six on the night.
The Rascals (37-30) and Boomers (36-30) play the second game of their series tomorrow night, with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m. CDT from Boomers Stadium. Austin Dubsky is expected to take the mound for the Rascals.
