Baseball Recap: O'connor Has No Trouble Against Holmes

Panthers

Margin (Wins)

02/28/25 @ Judson	12
04/08/25 @ Holmes	11
04/04/25 @ Marshall	10
04/01/25 vs Marshall	10
03/13/25 @ Harlan	10

O'Connor never got on the board in their matchup last Saturday, but that sure wasn't the case in their game against Holmes on Tuesday. They blew past the Huskies 12-1. Considering the Panthers have won eight matches by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.

Dalton Blake made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out eight over five innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because O'Connor is undefeated when he allows at most one earned run, but 6-9 otherwise. Blake was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with three RBI, two runs, and one triple. That triple marked the first that he hit this season.

In other pitching news, Ryan Zaiontz looked comfortable as he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances.

Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Jayden Contreras, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with three runs, three doubles, and three RBI. He has become a key player for O'Connor: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 7-9 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Ryan Mason, who scored two runs while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.

O'Connor hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team has now struck out at least five batters in 13 consecutive contests.

O'Connor is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 11-9 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.8 runs on average over those games. As for Holmes, their defeat was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 3-17.

O'Connor will have a chance to go back-to-back against the Huskies: the pair's next game is a rematch scheduled at 4:45 p.m. on Friday.