Hillcrest had lost three straight on the road, but on Thursday they dropped their record down to 7-13 to make it four. They fell 10-5 to the Bonneville Bees. Unfortunately, that's the second time they've come up short against the Bees this season, as they also lost their prior matchup 11-1 on Thursday.
Hillcrest got a good showing from Teagan Gray, who pitched three innings while giving up just two earned runs off one hit. What's more, Gray gave up only one walk, the fewest he's had since back in March.
At the plate, Bowen Croft made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and got on base in all three of his plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs. Michael McCarty was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base and two RBI.
As for Bonneville, the victory was the third in a row for them, bringing their record up to 19-3. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.7 runs over those games.
On Bonneville's side, Coltan Spagnuolo made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only two hits over four innings pitched. Spagnuolo was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base and one RBI.
In other batting news, Bonneville let Taye Lords and Greyson Martin run wild. Lords went 2-for-4 with one triple, one stolen base, and one run, while Martin got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs. Martin has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played. Another player making a difference was Ethan Smith, who went 1-for-2 with two runs and one double.
While Hillcrest had to take the loss, they won't have to wait long to give it another shot: the pair's next game is a rematch scheduled at 4:00 p.m. on Friday.
