Baseball Game Preview: Xavier Falcons vs. Cheshire Rams

The Xavier Falcons will head out to face off against the Cheshire Rams at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

On Wednesday, Xavier sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 7-5 win over Cromwell. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Falcons.

Meanwhile, Cheshire entered their tilt with Northwestern Regional on Wednesday with four consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with five. They came out on top against the Highlanders by a score of 6-2.

Bennett Crerar made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one hit in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two doubles, two RBI, and one run.

In other pitching news, Stephen Fitzmaurice and Nick Giampietro dominated on the mound. Fitzmaurice tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits, while Giampietro pitched four innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits. The dominant performance also gave Giampietro a new career-high in strikeouts (four).

Back at the plate, Luke Mann was excellent, getting on base in all three of his plate appearances with three runs and one stolen base. Those three runs gave him a new career-high. Daniel Hayden was another key player, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.

Xavier's record now sits at 16-5. As for Cheshire, their record is now 15-7.

Xavier came out on top in a nail-biter against Cheshire in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, sneaking past 6-4. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Falcons since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.