The North Providence Cougars will venture away from home to take on the West Warwick Wizards at 6:00 p.m. on Sunday. North Providence's pitching crew has only allowed 3.7 runs per game this season, so West Warwick's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
On Friday, it was close, but North Providence sidestepped Rogers for a 7-5 victory.
Tony Abed spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered four earned (and one unearned) runs on 13 hits and racked up six Ks.
At the plate, Ronnie Paux was incredible, going 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in April. Another player making a difference was Carter Harris, who went 1-for-3 with two runs and one stolen base.
Meanwhile, West Warwick faced Ponaganset in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Tuesday. The Wizards walked away with a 5-1 win over the Chieftains.
West Warwick also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and he was also dialed-in: Anthony Burt gave up a run (which was unearned) on one hit and racked up 12 Ks.
On the hitting side, West Warwick let Jair Blanco and Nick Andruchow run wild. Blanco went 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one double, while Andruchow went 1-for-3 with one run, one double, and one RBI. Luke Gallo was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two RBI.
West Warwick has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-4 record this season. As for North Providence, their record is now 13-5.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Sunday as neither team is afraid to steal. North Providence has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like West Warwick struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.2 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
North Providence couldn't quite get it done against West Warwick in their previous meeting back in May of 2019 as they fell 8-5. Can the Cougars avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
