Newton Falls is a perfect 8-0 against Brookfield since April of 2021 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Monday. The Tigers will head out on the road to challenge the Warriors at 5:00 p.m. Newton Falls will be looking to extend their current three-game winning streak.
Newton Falls will bounce into Monday's match after beating Garfield, who they had gone 1-6 against in their seven prior meetings. The Tigers blew past the G-Men 8-2 on Wednesday.
Leland Vargo
| 04/23/25 vs Garfield | 2 |
| 04/17/25 @ LaBrae | 2 |
| 04/16/25 @ East | 0 |
| 04/09/25 @ Southeast | 2 |
Leland Vargo spent all seven innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned runs on four hits and racked up ten Ks. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Trevor Ruscoe was excellent, going 1-for-4 with one home run and three RBI. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in May of 2024.
Meanwhile, Brookfield didn't have quite enough to beat Lowellville on Thursday and fell 8-6. The Warriors have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Blake Hammond put in work while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Brookfield is 3-1 when he allows at most one earned run, but 1-3 otherwise. Hammond was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-5 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
In other batting news, Brayden Sangregorio and Josh Rankin did some serious damage despite the final result: Sangregorio went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI, while Rankin went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases and one run. Joe Hook was another key player, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base and one run.
Newton Falls pushed their record up to 6-5 with the victory, which was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.1 runs on average over those games. As for Brookfield, their loss dropped their record down to 4-4.
Newton Falls beat Brookfield 4-0 when the teams last played back in April of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Tigers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
