The Chugiak Mustangs will head out to challenge the Service Cougars at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. Chugiak is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.2 runs per game this season.
Chugiak is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Alaska's top teams: Bartlett, who was ranked 24th at the time (Chugiak was ranked 11th). The Mustangs were the clear victors by a 15-0 margin over the Golden Bears on Friday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Mustangs considering their two-run performance the match before.
Cole Lux
| 05/16/25 vs Bartlett | 3 |
| 05/01/25 @ West Anchorage | 2 |
| 05/10/25 vs South Anchorage | 1 |
| 05/08/25 @ Bettye Davis East Anchorage | 1 |
| 05/06/25 vs West Anchorage | 1 |
The team relied heavily on Cole Lux, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Jack Carron, who went 1-for-2 with one triple, two RBI, and one run.
Chugiak always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .583. They are 3-1 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Meanwhile, Service narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past Colony 3-2. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Cougars.
Ashton Miller spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned (and one unearned) run on three hits.
At the plate, Rilen Niclai was excellent, going 1-for-2 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
Service's win was their ninth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 15-1. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for Chugiak, they are on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a massive bump to their 6-8 record this season.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. Chugiak has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.4 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Service struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.7 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Chugiak couldn't quite finish off Service in their previous meeting back in April and fell 7-5. Can the Mustangs avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
