Ice League Red Sox Ryan Taylor bats in the top of the fifth inning. Taylor scored his second run for the team on Wednesday at Holcom Park.

It looked like the Pirates were going to beat the Red Sox until the final inning at Ice Field last Wednesday.

That’s when the Red Sox scored seven runs to win 11-5.

Things didn’t get started for the Red Sox until the fifth inning when they scored three runs. But the Pirates continued to lead until the seventh, which might have been a surprise to those who know the team. The Pirates don’t practice.

The team is composed of Free State High School athletes, all of whom don’t play baseball for the school, and two have never played baseball.

“They do pretty good for not practicing,” Doyle Coons, head coach said, said.

The coach’s son, Dale, put the team together mostly because he just wanted to have fun with his friends this summer. The team is made up of seniors, except for one.

The Pirates also drew a nice crowd of Free State fans. About 15 students showed up to root for the team.

But the cheers weren’t enough to seal a victory for the Pirates. The game started slow for both teams. In the bottom of the first, the Pirates scored two runs, and the score remained at 2-0 until the top of the fifth.

Ice League Red Sox Ryan Taylor bats in the top of the fifth inning. Taylor scored his second run for the team on Wednesday at Holcom Park.

The Pirates nearly scored again in the bottom of the fourth when Nick Devin stole second and third. He tried running home when the third batter was up, but Red Sox pitcher Cody Nelson got him out with the help of catcher Lucas Bergstrom.

With the three runs scored in the top of the fifth, the Red Sox had the lead for the first time. But the Pirates managed to score two more runs in the bottom, making the score 4-3.

The lead carried into the sixth inning with the Red Sox scoring another run. Pirates pitcher Jack Hull was having trouble with his control, which made Coons call a time-out and bring in the entire team to the mound. The Pirates got another run to keep their lead at 5-4.

Another time-out was needed in the top of the seventh after the Red Sox scored four runs. Cameron Casady was brought into pitch for the Pirates. But the inning still ended up being great for the Red Sox, who scored three more runs.

“I was proud of the way they stuck it out to the very end,” said Jay Gomez, Red Sox head coach.

The Pirates didn’t score in the bottom of the seventh, with Sam Harwood pitching in the end.

Although Gomez was proud of the way his team played, second baseman Nick Jackson thought they slacked off too much in the first few innings.

“We didn’t play very good throughout the game as a whole,” he said. “We finally had some people step up in the end to help with the win.”

But Gomez was impressed with the way the team does come together, which he noticed has improved throughout the season.

“They really believe in each other and that’s nice to see,” he said.