Mulberry is 2-8 against Fort Meade since March of 2020 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Panthers will host the Miners at 7:00 p.m. Mulberry will be looking to extend their current six-game winning streak.
Mulberry's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Monday. They came out on top against Victory Christian Academy by a score of 4-0. That's two games straight that the Panthers have won by exactly four runs.
Justin Williams looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out eight over four innings pitched.
At the plate, Mulberry let Griffin Cline and Hayden Wyatt run wild. Cline went 2-for-4 with one triple and one run, while Wyatt went a perfect 2-for-2 with one double and one RBI. Gavin Stedman was another key player, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-4.
Mulberry hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Victory Christian Academy struck out 14 times.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Fort Meade, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Frostproof on Wednesday, sneaking past 5-3. The victory continues a trend for the Miners in their matchups with the Bulldogs: they've now won four in a row.
Owen Harrell and DeMarion Abrams made a big impact while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Harrell didn't allow a single earned run while striking out seven over four innings pitched. Meanwhile, Abrams struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Those six strikeouts gave him a new career-high. At the plate, Harrell scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances, while Abrams scored a run while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Noe Jaramillo, who went 1-for-3 with one home run. That home run was his first of the season. The team also got some help courtesy of Zachary Brooks, who went 2-for-3 with one double and one RBI.
Fort Meade pushed their record up to 14-7 with the win, which was their third straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.7 runs on average over those games. As for Mulberry, their win bumped their record up to 16-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Mulberry has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Fort Meade struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Mulberry was able to grind out a solid victory over Fort Meade in their previous meeting back in March, winning 8-3. Will the Panthers repeat their success, or do the Miners have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
