Hoots Outlast Pistol Shrimp In Extra Innings

Ferguson knocks in go-ahead run in 10th inning

The O’Fallon Hoots (25-25, 10-13) traveled to Peru, Ill., Friday night to start a two-game set against the Illinois Valley Pistol (24-25, 12-10). The first game ended in favor of the Hoots, who needed 10 innings to take down the Shrimp, 8-5. 

Inside the Box Score

• Michael Long led all players with four RBIs, thanks in large part to his two home runs. He totaled three hits on the night as well as three runs scored. 
• Chase Beattie also collected a home run in addition to three hits and two RBIs. 
• Tyler Ferguson and Zach Beatty tallied the other two RBIs for the Hoots.
• Sam Feltz picked up his fourth win of the year in his two innings of relief, allowing no runs. 

How it Happened

• Michael Long started the scoring in the second inning with a solo shot in the lead-off spot. Chase Beattie then doubled and was soon driven in on a Zach Beatty single, setting the score at 2-0 in favor of O’Fallon.
• Illinois Valley cut into the lead in the bottom of the second. With runners on first and second, Isaiah Hart singled to drive a run in and cut the lead in half, 2-1. 
• Long struck again with another homer in the top of third. This time, he did it with two runners on after Drew Mize singled and Tyler Ferguson walked. The three-run blast upped the Hoots’s lead to 5-1. 
• Ryan Bakes got a run back for his Pistol Shrimp when he started the bottom of the third with a solo home run, making the score 5-2. 
• In the fifth, Bakes joined Long in the multi-home run club when he powered his second long ball over the center field run to bring Illinois Valley one run closer, 5-3. 
• Hart added to his RBI total on the day in the eighth inning, when his hit to left field left the park and scored two runs, tying the game at 5-5. 
• After both teams’s offenses were stymied in the ninth inning, Ferguson started extra innings with an RBI single that scored Jack Meyer, who was placed on second to start the 10th. Now up by one, Long collected his third hit of the night with a single, and Beattie added to the home run bonanza with a two-run bomb, adding to O’Fallon’s lead, which now sat at 8-5. Sam Feltz shut the door on the Shrimp in the bottom of the tenth, clinching the win for the Hoots. 

Up Next

The Hoots and Pistol Shrimp conclude their regular season series tomorrow, still at Illinois Valley. First pitch for the contest is set for 7:05 p.m. CST, and coverage can be found at ofallonhoots.com, as well as the team’s Twitter (@ofallonbaseball) and Instagram (ofallonhoots).