Baseball Recap: Tohopekaliga Has No Trouble Against Liberty

Tigers

Margin (Wins)

02/11/25 @ Cocoa	19
04/02/25 vs Poinciana	15
02/20/25 @ Lake Buena Vista	14
04/09/25 vs Liberty	13
03/13/25 @ Orlando Christian Prep	10

Tohopekaliga had to skate by with only a two-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the 13-run drubbing they dealt Liberty on Wednesday. The Tigers blew past the Chargers 14-1. Considering the Tigers have won six matches by more than five runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.

Ronniel Mercedes and Cristian Viali made a splash no matter where they played. On the mound, Mercedes tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Viali struck out eight batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits (and only one walk). What's more, Mercedes posted five strikeouts, the most he's had since back in February. At bat, Mercedes scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-2, while Viali scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-3. Viali is becoming a predictor of Tohopekaliga's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 6-2 (and 4-7 when he doesn't).

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Fernando Ferrer, who went 2-for-3 with three runs, three RBI, and one triple. That's the most hits he has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Hudson Moberly, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3.

Tohopekaliga always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .581. They are a perfect 4-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.

Tohopekaliga now has a winning record of 10-9. As for Liberty, they dropped their record down to 0-10 with the defeat, which was their sixth straight on the road.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Tohopekaliga will welcome Cornerstone Charter Academy at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (the Tigers have four straight wins, the Ducks have four straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field. As for Liberty, they will host Oak Ridge at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. The Pioneers have struggled to contain batters this season (they've allowed 12.53 runs per game on average), something the Chargers will no doubt try to take advantage of.