Newport and Halifax are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2019, but likely not for long. The Buffaloes will look to defend their home field on Thursday against the Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Newport comes in on three and Halifax on seven.
For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Newport and Line Mountain meet (four straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Wednesday. The Buffaloes never let the Eagles get on the board and left with a 2-0 win. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Buffaloes have posted since March 18th.
Landon Zaring
| 04/16/25 @ Line Mountain | 11 |
| 04/04/25 @ East Juniata | 8 |
| 03/26/25 @ Line Mountain | 7 |
| 03/22/25 vs Greenwood | 5 |
Not much got past Landon Zaring, who gave up just four hits and racked up 11 Ks to keep Line Mountain off the board. Zaring has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Zachary Bates was excellent, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-2. The team also got some help courtesy of Chris Imler, who scored a run while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Halifax had just enough and edged out Susquenita 1-0 on Monday. The one-run effort marked the Wildcats' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Halifax saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Cooper Custer, who went 1-for-3 with one double.
Newport pushed their record up to 7-2 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.3 runs over those games. As for Halifax, their win bumped their record up to 7-1.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Thursday as neither team is afraid to steal. Newport has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.8 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Halifax struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 6 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Newport might still be hurting after the 14-1 defeat they got from Halifax when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Can the Buffaloes avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
