Baseball Game Preview: Manchester Regional Falcons vs. Hawthorne Bears

Manchester Regional is 0-10 against Hawthorne since April of 2017 but things could change on Thursday. The Falcons will be playing in front of their home fans against the Bears at 4:00 p.m. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Manchester Regional's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Wednesday. They put the hurt on Paterson Charter School for Science and Technology with a sharp 27-0 win. The Falcons have beaten the Lions the last five times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Lions has come to flipping the script.

Bryan Almodovar and Adrian Hernandez made a splash while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Almodovar tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Meanwhile, Hernandez pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits. At the plate, Almodovar scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-3, while Hernandez scored four runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-4.

In other batting news, Luis Feliz was a standout: he scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-2. Another player making a difference was Geremi Gonzalez, who scored three runs and stole two bases while going 4-for-5.

Meanwhile, Hawthorne posted their closest victory since April 25, 2024 on Wednesday. They narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past Butler 2-1.

The victory got Hawthorne back to even at 2-2. As for Manchester Regional, their win (their first of the season) made their record 1-2.

Manchester Regional might still be hurting after the 15-4 loss they got from Hawthorne in their previous meeting back in May of 2024. Can the Falcons avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.