The Leyden Eagles will head out on the road to square off against the Conant Cougars at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The last three games Leyden has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Last Monday, Leyden didn't have quite enough to beat Willowbrook and fell 8-7. The loss put an end to the Eagles' undefeated start to the season.
Angel Gutierrez and Jacob Ganir stepped up to the plate in a big way. Gutierrez went 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double, while Ganir scored a run while going 2-for-3. That's the most hits Ganir has posted since back in March of 2024. Another player making a difference was Sammy Calderon, who scored two runs while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Conant fought the good fight in their extra-innings contest against Niles North on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Vikings by a score of 2-1. Having soared to a lofty 15 runs in the game before, the Cougars couldn't push the score so high this time.
Franklin Kirchner was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 13 batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. Kirchner was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with one home run.
Kirchner wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Jacob Szpiganowicz, who went 1-for-3 with one double.
Having lost for the first time this season, Leyden fell to 2-1. As for Conant, their loss was their first of the season and also makes their record 2-1.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Wednesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Leyden has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Conant struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 2.7 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Leyden couldn't quite finish off Conant when the teams last played back in March of 2024 and fell 12-10. Can Leyden avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
