The Sandalwood Saints will head out on the road to square off against the Baker County Wildcats at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.
Sandalwood's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Wednesday. Everything went their way against Hilliard as Sandalwood made off with a 10-0 win. Considering the Saints' hitters had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
Sandalwood got a great performance from Bryce Foster as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit over five innings pitched.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Trent Baskins, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. That home run marked the first that he launched this season. Trey Dennis was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
Sandalwood kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That's the most hits they've posted since back in March of 2024.
Meanwhile, Baker County got the win against Hilliard on Thursday by a conclusive 9-0. The victory continues a trend for the Wildcats in their matchups with the Red Flashes: they've now won four in a row.
Reese Taylor was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Furthermore, he didn't allow a single walk, the first time he has blanked an opponent since back in April of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, Evan Cannon was excellent, scoring a run while going 3-for-5. Another player making a difference was Cole Springer, who scored a run while going 2-for-5.
The win got Sandalwood back to even at 4-4. As for Baker County, the victory got them back to even at 5-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Sandalwood has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Baker County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.3 strikeouts. 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.
