Baseball Preview: Eagle River Wolves vs. Service Cougars
Eagle River is 2-7 against Service since May of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. The Eagle River Wolves are on the road again to play the Service Cougars at 3:30 p.m. Both teams come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Eagle River is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They walked away with a 6-1 win over South Anchorage.
Ryan Mullen made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over 6.1 innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits (and only one walk). Mullen was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Mullen wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Gunner Mountcastle, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was Dallin Roberts, who scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Service put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their undefeated season alive. They blew past Sitka 15-1. Service might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team's won 11 contests by six runs or more this season.
Like Eagle River, Service also got a great game from a two-way player: Connor Monahan. He tossed three innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. Monahan has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive pitching appearances. Monahan was even better at the plate, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, Rilen Niclai was incredible, going 4-for-4 with two triples, three runs, and three RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Sebastian Fournier, who scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4.
Eagle River is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 16-7 record this season. As for Service, their record is now 21-0-1.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Eagle River has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Service struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.9. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
