The Citrus Valley Blackhawks will head out on the road to challenge the Bloomington Bruins at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday. Citrus Valley is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.9 runs per game this season.
While Citrus Valley's win against Beaumont wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Blackhawks' pitcher stepped up to hand the Cougars a 2-0 shutout on Thursday. The victory continues a trend for the Blackhawks in their matchups with the Cougars: they've now won four in a row.
Jake Clark
| 04/17/25 vs Redlands | 3 |
| 03/18/25 @ Summit | 3 |
| 04/10/25 @ Yucaipa | 1 |
| 04/01/25 vs Cajon | 1 |
Not much got past Jake Clark, who gave up just four hits to keep Beaumont off the board. Clark also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Citrus Valley is 5-1 when he allows at most one earned run, but 8-9 otherwise.
On the hitting side, Citrus Valley saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Cole West, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases. West is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last five games he's played. Adrian Abarca was another, getting three hits from his three at bats.
Carter hit Bloomington with a four-run seventh inning on Friday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Bruins fell 7-4 to the Lions.
Nathan Martin was cooking despite his team's loss, going 3-for-4 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. The team also got some help courtesy of Andrew Velazquez, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with one double.
Citrus Valley pushed their record up to 13-10 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. The road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.7 runs over those games. As for Bloomington, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost nine of their last ten contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 8-13 record this season.
Bloomington's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Citrus Valley hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .313. It's a different story for Bloomington, though, as they've only averaged .207. Will they be able to contain Citrus Valley's hitters? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
