The Freedom Patriots wasted no time in their 5-1 victory over Liberty when Brenna Ortwein hit a three-run home run in the top of the first inning on Monday at Liberty.

“I missed the first one, but then she started throwing higher, and I decided if she throws another one, that’s my chance, and I got on it,” Ortwein said.

The ball was hit to right center and also scored Gabby Glick and MaKenzie Smith.

“Definitely when it hit the bat, I knew it was going to be a solid hit, but it didn’t go over until I was past first base, so I had to run it out,” said Ortwein.

In the bottom of the first, Liberty leadoff batter Alexa Burger hit a home run for the Hurricanes.

Madison Piripavel hit a double in the fourth inning and scored the Patriots’ fourth run on a sacrifice fly.

Liberty’s only other hit was a single by Julie Curti that went over second base in the bottom of the fourth.

The Patriot’s scored their final run in the fifth inning when Smith scored on a passed ball.

Freedom’s Taylor Resetar had two base hits in the game.

“This really turns our season around,” said Ortwein. “We’re on a little bit of a losing streak, but anytime beating a big team like this, it’s definitely going to help us. I think this is one of our best hit games, not a lot of errors, and we all hit the ball pretty well from a really good pitcher, so this is a very good game for us to win.”

Jen Slanovec was the winning pitcher.

“The umpire wasn’t calling my screwball as often as he was last game, so I relied more on my curveball and fastball,” she said. “We needed this game to win to push us forward to win the rest of the week, but also because it is our rival, and it was a big game for us.”