Baseball Game Preview: Woonsocket Villa Novans vs. North Smithfield Northmen

Woonsocket has gone a perfect 5-0 against North Smithfield recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Saturday. The Villa Novans will be playing at home against the Northmen at 11:00 a.m. Woonsocket is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 11.8 runs per game this season.

For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Woonsocket and Tiverton meet (three straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Wednesday. The Villa Novans came out on top against the Tigers by a score of 4-1.

Braylon Guilbeault spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned run on three hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Woonsocket saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Joseph Greenless, who went 1-for-4 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.

Meanwhile, North Smithfield came up short against Hope on Wednesday, falling 12-2. The Northmen have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

North Smithfield's defeat dropped their record down to 8-10. As for Woonsocket, their win was their tenth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 15-1.

North Smithfield's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Woonsocket hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .368. It's a different story for North Smithfield, though, as they've only averaged .257. Will they be able to contain Woonsocket's hitters?

Woonsocket beat North Smithfield 8-3 in their previous meeting back in April. Do the Villa Novans have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Northmen turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.