Baseball Preview: Papillion-LaVista Monarchs vs. Bellevue East Chieftains
Papillion-LaVista has enjoyed the comforts of home their last four games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will face off against the Bellevue East Chieftains at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The last five games Papillion-LaVista has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Papillion-LaVista is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Nebraska's top teams: Elkhorn, who was ranked 24th in their home state at the time (Papillion-LaVista was ranked 14th). Papillion-LaVista had just enough and edged Elkhorn out 4-2.
Papillion-LaVista got a great performance from Trevor Antoniak as he didn't allow a single earned run and only two hits while striking out nine over five innings pitched.
At the plate, Papillion-LaVista let Parker Ingram and Issac Pamaran loose on the outfield. Ingram went 2-for-3 with three RBI and a triple, while Pamaran scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Bellevue East scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Saturday. They were the clear victor by an 18-1 margin over Buena Vista. The win was familiar territory for Bellevue East who now have three in a row.
Mitchell Goldschmidt made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing an inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Goldschmidt has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances. Goldschmidt was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBI.
In other batting news, Ethan Greenwell was incredible, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 3-for-3. AJ Lucas was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 1-for-1.
Papillion-LaVista has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matches, which provided a nice bump to their 15-7 record this season. As for Bellevue East, they now have a winning record of 13-12.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Wednesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Papillion-LaVista has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Bellevue East struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.7. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Papillion-LaVista was able to grind out a solid victory over Bellevue East in their previous meeting back in March of 2023, winning 8-4. Will Papillion-LaVista repeat their success, or does Bellevue East have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
