Hardee has gone 9-1 against Lake Placid recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. The Hardee Wildcats will host the Lake Placid Dragons at 7:00 p.m. Hardee will be looking to extend their current three-game winning streak.
Hardee barely beat DeSoto County the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. Hardee's pitcher stepped up to hand DeSoto County a 7-0 shutout on Tuesday. The Wildcats not only won on Tuesday, but they posted their biggest win since February 6th.
Ryan Rivas
| 02/11/25 vs Sebring | 2 |
| 02/25/25 @ Mulberry | 1 |
Ryan Rivas was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out six over seven innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Hardee is undefeated when he allows at most two earned runs, but 2-3 otherwise. Rivas was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one home run. That home run was his first of the season.
Rivas wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Teagan Vansickle, who scored a run while going 2-for-3. That run marked the first that Vansickle scored this season. Another was Mekhi Taylor, who scored two runs and stole a base.
Meanwhile, Lake Placid won against Okeechobee on Thursday with seven runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. Lake Placid came out on top in a nail-biter against Frostproof, sneaking past 7-6. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Dragons have posted since April 15, 2024.
Like Hardee, Lake Placid also got a great game from a two-way player: Diesel Taylor. He tossed four innings while giving up just two earned (and three unearned) runs off two hits. Taylor was also stellar in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Caleb Andrews, who scored two runs and stole Two bases. while going 2-for-3. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Ricky Barajas, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI.
Hardee's win bumped their record up to 6-3. As for Lake Placid, their victory ended a six-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 2-8.
Hardee was able to grind out a solid win over Lake Placid in their previous meeting two weeks ago, winning 9-4. Does Hardee have another victory up their sleeve, or will Lake Placid turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
