The Hidden Valley Mustangs will face off against the Molalla Indians at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Hidden Valley comes in on four and Molalla on three.
14 must be Hidden Valley's lucky number: they beat Klamath Union with that score not once but twice on Monday. The Mustangs beat the Pelicans by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 14-4. The Mustangs might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 11 games by seven runs or more this season.
Jack Matthew made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over five innings while giving up four earned runs off three hits. Those nine strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in two of his five plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
In other batting news, Caden Kuhnert was incredible, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with one home run, four runs, and one stolen base. What's more, he posted two RBI, the most he's had since back in March. Another player making a difference was Alijah Zauher, who went 3-for-4 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run.
Meanwhile, Molalla sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 5-3 victory over The Dalles on Friday. That's two games straight that the Indians have won by exactly two runs.
Kyler Dickerson tossed a big game, striking out 11 batters over six innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Nyxon Hopping, who went 1-for-2 with one home run. That home run was his first of the season.
Hidden Valley pushed their record up to 16-7 with the win, which was their third straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.7 runs on average over those games. As for Molalla, their win bumped their record up to 19-6.
