The Hiland Hawks will be taking part in a tournament against the Monroe Central Seminoles at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday. The timing is sure in Hiland's favor as the squad sits on 25 straight wins at home (dating back to last season) while Monroe Central has been banged up by three consecutive losses on the road.
Hiland's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Saturday. Everything went their way against Kenston as they made off with a 10-0 victory. Considering the Hawks have won 11 games by more than five runs this season, Saturday's blowout was nothing new.
Monroe Central not only won on Monday, but they posted their biggest win since April 1st (when they won 14-6). They put the hurt on Malvern with a sharp 10-3 win.
Caleb Griffith made a splash while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing six innings while giving up three earned runs off eight hits. He also tossed a walk, which is notable because Monroe Central is undefeated when he allows at most one walk, but 7-16 otherwise. Griffith was even better at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one home run and five RBI. Those five RBI gave him a new career-high.
In other pitching news, Austin Bettinger looked comfortable as he tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits.
Back at the plate, Max Demchak was incredible, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Mason Landefeld, who got on base in two of his three plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Monroe Central kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 13 hits. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post 11 or more hits.
Monroe Central's victory bumped their record up to 10-16. As for Hiland, their win bumped their record up to 22-1.
Everything went Hiland's way against Monroe Central in their previous meeting back in May of 2016, as Hiland made off with a 16-0 victory. Do the Hawks have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Seminoles turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
