Dallas hasn't had much luck against Hazleton Area recently, but that could start to change on Tuesday. The Mountaineers are taking a road trip to square off against the Cougars at 4:30 p.m. Dallas is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.7 runs per game this season.
Dallas will roll into the matchup after a wild two-game stretch: they didn't score any runs on Wednesday, then bounced right back against Berwick on Monday. The Mountaineers were the clear victors by a 14-1 margin over the Bulldogs. The result was nothing new for the Mountaineers, who have now won three contests by ten runs or more so far this season.
Peyton Vanvalkenburg looked comfortable as he tossed four innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (three).
On the hitting side, Kaden Coyne was a standout: he scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. He also launched a home run, marking his first of the season. Another player making a difference was Connor Healey, who scored two runs while going 2-for-2.
Dallas was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .500. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, Hazleton Area had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 7 runs) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 3-2 W against the Comets. Those three runs were actually the fewest the Cougars have put up all season, but given the result they're probably not too concerned.
Aj Collevechio looked comfortable as he tossed 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits.
At the plate, Hazleton Area saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ryan Racho, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-3. Shea Higgins was another, going 1-for-3 with two RBI.
Hazleton Area's victory was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 5-2. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.3 runs on average over those games. As for Dallas, the victory got them back to even at 3-3.
Hazleton Area's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Dallas hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .318. It's a different story for Hazleton Area, though, as they've only averaged .251. Will they be able to contain Dallas' hitters? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
