Baseball Recap: Maine East Comes Up Short

Maine East extended their losing streak to nine on Thursday, dropping their season record down to 2-12 in the process. They lost 12-5 to the Vernon Hills Cougars. Unfortunately, that's the third time they've come up short against the Cougars this season, with their most recent defeat being a 10-0 loss on Tuesday.

Jackson Slamowitz and Kam'Ryn Thompson stepped up to the plate in a big way. Slamowitz got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two RBI, one run, and one double, while Thompson went 1-for-3 with two stolen bases and two runs.

As for Vernon Hills, the victory (which was their third in a row) raised their record to 7-12. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.7 runs over those games.

On Vernon Hills' side, Ryan Mick made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Mick has become a key player for Vernon Hills: the team is 2-1 when he allows at most two hits, but 5-11 otherwise. Mick was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with two runs.

In other batting news, DJ Biede was incredible, going 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, three RBI, and one run. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. Jeremy Gitzinger also deserves some recognition as he brought in his first RBI of the season.

We've got plenty of inter-conference action coming up soon. Maine East will face off against rival Maine West at 4:45 p.m. on Monday. Meanwhile, Vernon Hills is set to square off against their familiar foe Niles West at 4:45 p.m. on Monday.