Baseball Game Preview: Mena Bearcats vs. Dardanelle Sand Lizards

The Mena Bearcats will venture away from home to challenge the Dardanelle Sand Lizards at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Mena's pitching crew heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They were the clear victors by a 20-0 margin over Waldron. The contest marked the Bearcats' most dominant win of the season.

Dardanelle hadn't beaten Ozark on the road since March 29, 2022 but that history sure didn't bother them on Tuesday. The Sand Lizards sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-5 victory over the Hillbillies. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Sand Lizards have posted since March 11, 2024.

Alex Hernandez was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 13 over six innings pitched. He has become a key player for Dardanelle: the team is 2-1 when he posts at least eight strikeouts, but 5-7 otherwise. Hernandez was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with one double and one RBI.

In other batting news, Dardanelle let Cam Evans and Kentrell Diggs run wild. Evans scored a run and stole two bases while going 2-for-4, while Diggs went 1-for-3 with two stolen bases and two RBI. That's the most stolen bases Evans has posted since back in March.

The victory made it two in a row for Mena and bumps their season record up to 7-4. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered a grand total of 3 runs in those games. As for Dardanelle, their record is now 7-8.

Mena took their victory against Dardanelle in their previous meeting back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 12-6 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bearcats since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.