Baseball Game Preview: Hazen Highlanders vs. Bothell Cougars

The Hazen Highlanders will venture away from home to face off against the Bothell Cougars at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Hazen and Bellevue meet (three straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Tuesday. The Highlanders fell just short of the Wolverines by a score of 12-10.

Meanwhile, Bothell had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 6.3 runs) and they went ahead and made it four on Monday. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 2-1 W against the Patriots. That's two games straight that the Cougars have won by just one run.

Blake Skinner was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Skinner was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one triple and one double.

In other pitching news, Bothell got a great performance from Jarrett Tyler as he didn't allow a single earned run over six innings pitched. Tyler has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.

Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Teyton Hardeman, who went 3-for-6 with one stolen base and one RBI. That's the most hits he has posted since back in March.

Hazen's loss was their third straight at home, which dropped their record down to 6-11. Even worse, they were so close so many times: the defeats came by an average of only 1.67 runs. As for Bothell, their record now sits at 12-6.