Baseball Recap: Hammond Central Takes a Loss

Hammond Central extended their losing streak to five on Friday, dropping their season record down to 7-13-1 in the process. They lost 16-3 to the River Forest Ingots. The result was an unpleasant reminder to the Wolves of the 5-0 defeat they experienced in the pair's previous head-to-head fixture back in May of 2024.

Hammond Central saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Joshua Flores, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with two runs and one double. That double marked the first that Flores has hit this season.

As for River Forest, the win was the fifth in a row for them, bringing their record up to 12-6. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.2 runs over those games.

On River Forest's side, Brandon Fergerson made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Fergerson has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in five consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Walter Jaime, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with four stolen bases and four runs. Those four stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Roberto Herrera was another key player, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases, two RBI, and one run.

Hammond Central wasted no time getting back out on the field and has already played their next game, a 21-0 loss against Valparaiso on the 10th. As for River Forest, they also didn't take long to hit the field again: they've already played their next contest, a 13-0 win against Lake Station Edison on the 12th.