The Mira Mesa Marauders are taking a road trip to square off against the University City Centurions at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Mira Mesa will be strutting in after a victory while University City will be coming in after a defeat.
Mira Mesa lost a heartbreaker the last time they played Madison, but it's fair to say they got their revenge given the result of Thursday's contest. The Marauders blew past the Warhawks 11-2 on Thursday. The Marauders' hitters stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most runs they've scored all season.
Caleb Gerlach made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing five innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one run and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Nathaniel Widelski, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Khalil Graham, who went 2-for-4 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Mira Mesa always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .538. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Madison only posted an OBP of .286.
Meanwhile, University City fought the good fight in their extra-innings match against Coronado on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Islanders by a score of 7-6. The Centurions' loss continues a trend for the team, making it three in a row.
Jayden Parker and Josh Kaplan did some serious damage despite the final result: Parker went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and three runs, while Kaplan went 2-for-5 with three stolen bases, one run, and one RBI.
University City's defeat dropped their record down to 14-11. As for Mira Mesa, they moved to 11-14 with that win, which also ended their four-game losing streak.
Mira Mesa was able to grind out a solid victory over University City in their previous matchup back in May of 2023, winning 8-4. Will the Marauders repeat their success, or do the Centurions have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
