The Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks are taking a road trip to challenge the Goshen Central Gladiators at 4:15 p.m. on Friday. The last three games Newburgh Free Academy has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Newburgh Free Academy took a loss when they played away from home last Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They came out on top against Middletown by a score of 3-2 (the very same score they lost by in their prior game). Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last three times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Edwin Nunez looked comfortable as he struck out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in April of 2024.
At the plate, Newburgh Free Academy's victory was truly a team effort as three different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Chris Leggett, who went 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Goshen Central). They put the hurt on Monticello with a sharp 25-1 win on Wednesday. With that victory, the Gladiators brought their scoring average up to 7.8 runs per game.
Anthony Crispino and Grant Musson made a splash no matter where they played. On the mound, Crispino pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Meanwhile, Musson pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. At the plate, Crispino went 2-for-3 with three RBI and one run, while Musson went 1-for-5 with two runs and two RBI.
In other batting news, Stephen Kovacs and F Mitterbauer did most of the damage at the plate: Kovacs fired off six RBI, three runs, and three doubles while going 5-for-5, while Mitterbauer got on base in five of his six plate appearances with four runs, five RBI, and one stolen base. The team also got some help courtesy of Marc Smith, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with four runs and one RBI.
Goshen Central always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .646. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Newburgh Free Academy is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-3 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.9 runs on average over those games. As for Goshen Central, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 6-3.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Newburgh Free Academy has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.9 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Goshen Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.3 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.
