The Freedom Falcons will face off against the El Cerrito Gauchos at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Freedom comes in on three and El Cerrito on eight.
Freedom is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They came out on top against James Logan by a score of 6-3.
Colton Vick spent all eight innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned (and one unearned) runs on eight hits. He has been consistent for a while: he hasn't given up more than two walks in 14 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Dylan DeLauter, who went 1-for-4 with one home run and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Landon Clenney, who went 2-for-4 with one triple, two RBI, and one double.
Meanwhile, El Cerrito made easy work of San Rafael on Tuesday and carried off a 9-1 win.
El Cerrito also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and he was also dialed-in: AJ Bissell gave up only one earned run on one hit and racked up seven Ks.
On the hitting side, Kamal Bhatt was excellent, going 1-for-3 with two runs and one stolen base. Another player making a difference was Reggie Burnham, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with one run and one RBI.
El Cerrito hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team has now struck out at least four batters in three consecutive matchups.
El Cerrito's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 20-7. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.0 runs over those games. As for Freedom, they now have a winning record of 13-12.
Freedom came out on top in a nail-biter against El Cerrito when the teams last played back in March of 2022, sneaking past 4-2. Will the Falcons repeat their success, or do the Gauchos have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
