Baseball Preview: Mooresville Pioneers vs. Franklin Community Grizzly Cubs
The Mooresville Pioneers will be staying on the road on Saturday to face off against the Franklin Community Grizzly Cubs at 3:00 p.m. Both teams come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Mooresville is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Monday. They walked away with an 11-6 win over Center Grove. Mooresville's victory was all the more impressive since Center Grove was averaging only 3.67 runs allowed on the season.
Hogan Denny made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Denny has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive pitching appearances. Denny was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kaleb Kestler, who went 2-for-3 with a home run, four RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Deklan Thompson, who went 2-for-4 with four RBI, a run, and a double.
Meanwhile, Franklin Community came tearing into Monday's match with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 6.3 runs) and they left with even more momentum. They walked away with a 6-3 win over the Golden Bears.
Like Mooresville, Franklin Community also got a great game from a two-way player: Braeden Burton. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 11 batters over six innings while giving up three earned runs off six hits. Burton was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 1-for-1.
Burton wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Greyson Betts, who went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI. Owen Bullington was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
Mooresville's victory bumped their record up to 29-3. As for Franklin Community, they are on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven contests, which provided a massive bump to their 17-10 record this season.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Mooresville has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Franklin Community struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.8. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Mooresville beat Franklin Community 8-5 in their previous meeting back in April. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Franklin Community's Brooks McNicholas, who pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Mooresville still be able to contain McNicholas? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
