The National Trail Blazers will challenge the Franklin Monroe Jets at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
National Trail took a loss when they played away from home on Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They put the hurt on Botkins with a sharp 11-1 victory. The Blazers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three matchups by ten runs or more this season.
Braylon Coffey made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching three innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits. Coffey was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with three stolen bases and two runs. He has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last four times he's played.
Cooper Smith
| 04/17/25 vs Botkins | 2 |
| 04/10/25 vs Mississinawa Valley | 2 |
| 04/07/25 vs Trotwood-Madison | 2 |
| 04/16/25 @ Twin Valley South | 1 |
| 04/08/25 @ Bradford | 1 |
In other batting news, Cooper Smith was incredible, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with three stolen bases, three RBI, and two runs. He is becoming a predictor of National Trail's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 1-6 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Mason Leal, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
National Trail always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .562. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Botkins only posted an OBP of .364.
The home team had won the previous three meetings between Franklin Monroe and Bradford, and Franklin Monroe kept the tradition alive. The Jets were the clear victors by a 17-1 margin over the Railroaders on Thursday. The high-scoring performance was a welcome turnaround for the Jets' hitters, who had struggled in the games prior.
National Trail's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 4-6. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.7 runs over those games. As for Franklin Monroe, their win bumped their record up to 5-6.
National Trail skirted past Franklin Monroe 3-1 when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Will the Blazers repeat their success, or do the Jets have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
