The Decatur Golden Gators will head out to square off against the Auburn Mountainview Lions at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Decatur is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.3 runs per game this season.
Decatur is headed into the matchup having just posted their closest victory since March 24th on Tuesday. They had just enough and edged out Enumclaw 6-4.
Ethan Flavel
| 04/22/25 @ Enumclaw | 11 |
| 04/17/25 vs Peninsula | 4 |
| 03/28/25 @ Jefferson | 7 |
| 03/18/25 @ Kentlake | 2 |
| 03/14/25 @ Auburn Riverside | 11 |
Ethan Flavel made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 11 over four innings pitched. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in March. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with two RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Eric Havili, who went 1-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Cervantes (CJ) Gatterson, who went 2-for-3 with one run and one double.
Meanwhile, Auburn Mountainview got the win against Kent-Meridian on Tuesday by a conclusive 13-2. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Lions.
Like Decatur, Auburn Mountainview also got a great game from a two-way player: Jeremiah Weatherford. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off one hit. Auburn Mountainview is 2-1 when Weatherford allows one or fewer earned runs, but 5-7 otherwise. Weatherford was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with two stolen bases, two RBI, and one run.
In other batting news, Imani Brown was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and one stolen base. He has become a key player for Auburn Mountainview: the team is 4-1 when he posts at least two runs, but 3-7 otherwise. Lucas McGraw was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Auburn Mountainview was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .400. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Kent-Meridian only posted a batting average of .067.
Decatur's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 13-1-1. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.3 runs over those games. As for Auburn Mountainview, their record is now 7-8.
Auburn Mountainview's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Decatur has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .435. It's a different story for Auburn Mountainview, though, as they've only averaged .359. Will they be able to contain Decatur's hitters?
Decatur was able to grind out a solid win over Auburn Mountainview in their previous meeting back in March of 2024, winning 4-1. Will the Golden Gators repeat their success, or do the Lions have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
