Freedom dropped their record down to 11-4 on Wednesday, which also ended the team's three-game streak of wins at home. They fell just short of the Nazareth Area Blue Eagles by a score of 4-2. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest defeat the Patriots have suffered since May 13, 2024.
Michael Horvath was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he tossed five innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits. What's more, he gave up only two walks, the fewest he's had since back in March.
On the hitting side, Freedom saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Darien Serrano, who went 2-for-3 with one RBI.
As for Nazareth Area, their victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 11-4. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.3 runs on average over those games.
On Nazareth Area's side, Bobby Grzenda and Landon Glovas were major factors while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Grzenda pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Meanwhile, Glovas didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over six innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in five consecutive appearances. At the plate, Grzenda went 1-for-3 with three RBI and one double, while Glovas went 3-for-4 with one run and one RBI. Those three hits gave Glovas a new career-high.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Ryan Petruska, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and one double. Chase Kilareski also deserves some recognition as he hit his first triple of the season.
Freedom and Nazareth Area should be looking forward to their upcoming games as both have a sizable advantage in the MaxPreps Pennsylvania Rankings. The Patriots will challenge Southern Lehigh at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday with a big rank advantage (22 vs. 201). Meanwhile, Nazareth Area (ranked 65th) will meet Bethlehem Catholic (ranked 209th) at 4:00 p.m. on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
