The Gateway Grizzlies received a seven-inning shutout performance on the mound from Collin Sullivan (8-3), and added on offense in the middle and late innings to top the Joliet Slammers 7-2 at Duly Health and Care Field, evening up the mid-week series at one game apiece.
With Sullivan tossing a no-hitter for the first five innings, Gateway scored first in the top of the third, taking advantage of a pair of Slammers errors to score two runs off Ricky Castro (3-4) on a double-steal and the second of the two errors, which allowed Jairus Richards to come in with the game’s first run, followed by a Peter Zimmermann RBI single to double the lead to 2-0.
The Grizzlies would then add runs to their lead in the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, going up 3-0 on a sacrifice fly by Clint Freeman in the fifth, then 4-0 and 5-0 the next two innings on solo home runs off the bats of D.J. Stewart and Richards, and finally 7-0 in the eighth on back-to-back bases-loaded walks by Richards and Cole Brannen.
Joliet would score single runs in the eighth and the ninth innings to break up the shutout, but it was not enough. Sullivan earned his eighth win of the season by allowing just three hits and three walks while striking out eight, giving Gateway first place back by themselves in the West Division standings with the Washington Wild Things’ win over the Schaumburg Boomers.
Gateway will look to win the series in the rubber game on Thursday, August 3, at 6:35 p.m. CT, sending Joey Gonzalez to the mound against the Slammers’ Cam Aufderheide in a matchup of experienced right-handers at Duly Health and Care Field.
Jason Guerette is the Grizzlies' Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations and the "Voice of the Grizzlies." 2023 will be his second season with the organization, handling lead broadcasting duties on the Grizzlies Media Network as well as being in charge of all team press releases and game-day media materials.
2023 will also be Jason's ninth season in the Frontier League after spending 2014-21 in the same role with the Southern Illinois Miners. Overall, he has broadcasted close to 800 games in the league, including playoffs. During the baseball offseason, he serves as a play-by-play broadcaster for Manhattan College and the New Jersey Institute of Technology, with games being seen on ESPN+ among other platforms.
In addition to broadcasting, Jason works as a public address announcer for Seton Hall University women's basketball as well as Columbia University men's and women's basketball. He also spent nine years working "behind the scenes" as a freelance board operator and highlight editor at Westwood One for their coverage of the NFL, NCAA football, and NCAA basketball.
Jason graduated from Seton Hall in 2012 with B.A. in Communication Studies and a minor in Broadcasting & Visual Media.
