For the first time this season, Cocoa Beach will have a chance to prove themselves in a conference matchup on Thursday. They are taking a road trip to challenge the Melbourne Central Catholic Hustlers at 4:30 p.m. Cocoa Beach will be strutting in after a win while Melbourne Central Catholic will be coming in after a loss.
Cocoa Beach is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Cocoa a 37-0 shutout on Wednesday. With that victory, the Minutemen brought their scoring average up to 6.6 runs per game.
Jacob Kromash made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out eight over four innings pitched. Kromash was also big at the plate, getting on base in six of his seven plate appearances with five runs, four RBI, and one double. He also got two hits, marking his first of the season.
Anthony Ceruti
| 03/12/25 @ Cocoa | 5 |
| 02/26/25 @ Space Coast | 2 |
| 02/20/25 vs Eau Gallie | 2 |
| 03/04/25 @ Merritt Island | 1 |
| 02/12/25 vs Heritage | 1 |
| + 1 more games |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Anthony Ceruti, who got on base in all seven of his plate appearances with five runs, six RBI, and one triple. Cocoa Beach is undefeated when Ceruti posts two or more runs, but 2-6 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Vincent Barchanowicz, who went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and one double.
Cocoa Beach kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 24 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 4.2 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 matches they've averaged 11.
Meanwhile, Melbourne Central Catholic came up short against Viera on Tuesday and fell 7-4. The Hustlers have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Melbourne Central Catholic saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ryder Widick, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.
Cocoa Beach moved to 5-6 with that win, which also ended their three-game losing streak. As for Melbourne Central Catholic, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-4.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Cocoa Beach has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Melbourne Central Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Cocoa Beach suffered a grim 15-6 defeat to Melbourne Central Catholic in their previous matchup back in May of 2024. Can Cocoa Beach avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
