Baseball Game Preview: Island Coast Gators vs. Palmetto Panthers

The Island Coast Gators will face off against the Palmetto Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday. The timing is sure in Island Coast's favor as the team sits on six straight wins at home (dating back to last season) while Palmetto has been banged up by four consecutive losses on the road.

Island Coast had to skate by with only a two-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the 11-run drubbing they dealt Riverdale on Friday. Island Coast blew past Riverdale 14-3. The result was nothing new for the Gators, who have now won five matches by six runs or more so far this season.

Island Coast got a great performance from Bobby Wilenius as he tossed 4.2 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits.

At the plate, Isaac Lopez was a standout: he scored three runs and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Brandon Tuduri was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 1-for-3.

Island Coast always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .541. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Riverdale only posted an OBP of .286.

Meanwhile, Palmetto lost 11-1 to Neumann on Friday.

Palmetto saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Giovani Orta, who went 1-for-2 with one double. That double marked the first that Orta hit this season.

Island Coast's win bumped their record up to 7-1. As for Palmetto, their loss dropped their record down to 1-6.