The McKean Highlanders are taking a road trip to take on the Polytech Panthers at 4:15 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Having struggled with four losses in a row, McKean turned things around against Newark on Thursday. They came out on top against the Yellowjackets by a score of 6-1.
Gavin Erbayri
| 04/15/25 vs Concord | 2 |
| 05/01/25 vs Newark | 1 |
| 04/10/25 @ Christiana | 1 |
Gavin Erbayri spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned run on two hits and racked up eight Ks. He has become a key player for McKean: the team is 4-2 when he allows at most two earned runs, but 1-4-1 otherwise.
On the hitting side, Jake Tumulty was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI. Those stolen bases marked the first that he has snagged this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jey Oquendo, who went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, one run, and one double.
Meanwhile, Polytech came tearing into Tuesday's game with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 7.5 runs), and they left with even more momentum. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 3-2 W against the Bluejays.
Elijiah Benton made a big impact no matter where he played. He pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in two of his three plate appearances with one stolen base and one run.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Asher Grubb, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one double and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Cameron Allen, who went 1-for-2 with two stolen bases and one RBI.
Polytech pushed their record up to 10-3 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for McKean, the victory was their first at home , bumping their record up to 5-6-1.
McKean suffered a grim 17-0 defeat to Polytech when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Can the Highlanders avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
