Holy Cross hasn't had much luck against Beechwood recently, but that could start to change on Wednesday. The Indians will venture away from home to take on the Tigers at 5:00 p.m.
Holy Cross came up short against Simon Kenton on Tuesday, falling 10-2. The Indians have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Ethan Neal made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Beechwood had already won six in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 5.7 runs) and they went ahead and made it seven on Monday. They didn't even let the Crusaders on the board, marking their second-straight 8-0 shutout. The Tigers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 11 matchups by six runs or more this season.
Kegan Hutton made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out six over seven innings pitched. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in March. He was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with three RBI, one run, and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Tyler Fryman, who went 3-for-5 with four stolen bases, four runs, and one triple. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 1.1 stolen bases per game. Matthew Cottengim was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two RBI and one double.
Beechwood always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .541. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as St. Henry only posted an OBP of .045.
Beechwood pushed their record up to 17-5 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.3 runs on average over those games. As for Holy Cross, their defeat dropped their record down to 8-14.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Wednesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Holy Cross has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.1 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Beechwood struggles in that department as they've been averaging 2.7 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Holy Cross suffered a grim 11-1 defeat to Beechwood in their previous meeting on Monday. Can the Indians avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
