Angel Molina belted a three-run homer and four relievers combined for 3 2/3 innings of shutout ball Saturday night as the Florence Freedom edged the host Washington Wild Things 6-4 in Frontier League baseball at Consol Energy Park.

Freedom right-hander Everett Saul went the first 5 1/3 innings to improve his record to 5-1. Saul, a rookie from Missouri Western State, left with the bases loaded and one out in the sixth with his team clinging to a 5-4 lead. Left-hander Stephen Shao then induced Wild Things center fielder Chris Sidick to pop out to second for the second out and retired second baseman Phil Butch on a pop-up to shortstop to end the threat.

Mike Rocco pitched a scoreless seventh and Yosandy Ibanez kept the Wild Things off the board in the eighth. That set the stage for Freedom all-star closer Cody Castle to record his ninth save of the season in as many chances. Castle retired the first two hitters in the ninth before he walked Jacob Dempsey and hit Nathan Messner with a pitch. With the tying runs aboard, Castle then retired right fielder Brad Arnett on a routine fly out to left to end the game.

Florence (22-22) scored first in the ballgame when third baseman Kelly Hunt connected for a home run for the fifth consecutive game with two outs in the fourth. The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder, who was playing at third for the first time this season, has now homered in six of the Freedom’s last seven games. Hunt’s league-leading 13th homer came off Washington starter Aaron Ledbetter (6-3). Arnett put the Wild Things in front for the first time in the bottom half of the fourth when he took Saul deep to left for a two-run homer. A leadoff solo homer by Freedom left fielder Ryan Basham in the top of the fifth evened the score once more. Washington (22-21) then untied it with a pair of runs in the fifth off Saul. Both runs scored when Messner doubled to right-center field with two outs in the inning. Florence then grabbed the lead for good in the sixth. The inning began when center fielder Garth McKinney led off with a double down the right-field line off Ledbetter. Hunt followed with a line-drive hit to left that moved McKinney to third with still nobody out. That set the stage for Molina, who lifted a drive over the wall in left for his 11th home run of the season to put the Freedom in front by a run. They added an insurance run in the seventh off reliever Chris Rivera when Eddie Gonzalez doubled and later scored when Washington catcher Kris Rochelle dropped the ball for an error while attempting to tag Gonzalez at the plate after a McKinney ground ball to short.

All nine Florence starters collected at least one hit as the Freedom offense combined for 12 total hits. Hunt, Molina and second baseman Billy Mottram led the way with two hits each. Mottram has now hit safely in seven consecutive games while McKinney extended his hitting streak to nine in a row, the longest current streak for a Florence player.

The series is now even at a game apiece with the rubber match to be played at 6:35 p.m. EDT Sunday at Consol Energy Park. Florence will send right-hander Andy Clark (3-0) to the mound against veteran Washington right-hander J.J. Hollenbeck (3-2). After a day off Monday, the Freedom return to Champion Window Field for a six-game homestand beginning Tuesday against the Rockford Riverhawks.