The Pleasant Grove Vikings will venture away from home to square off against the Payson Lions at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. Pleasant Grove is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last eight games.
While Pleasant Grove's win against Salem Hills wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Vikings sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 10-8 victory over the Skyhawks on Tuesday. Ten seems to be a good number for the Vikings as the squad scooped up a win with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Davey Staffieri and Tavake Wolfgramm did most of the damage at the plate: Staffieri got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI, while Wolfgramm went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and three runs. That's the most stolen bases Wolfgramm has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Tobin Degelbeck, who went 1-for-3 with four RBI, one run, and one double.
Pleasant Grove was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .375. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .375 or higher in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, it was close, but on Tuesday Payson sidestepped Timpview for a 2-1 victory. The Lions haven't had any issues with the Thunderbirds recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive win against them.
Payson secured the victory behind a pair of hitters. One of them was Ty Marvin, who went 1-for-2 with one run and one RBI.
Pleasant Grove's record is now 13-6. As for Payson, their record now sits at 13-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Pleasant Grove has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Payson struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Everything went Pleasant Grove's way against Payson when the teams last played back in March of 2017, as Pleasant Grove made off with an 11-1 win. Do the Vikings have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Lions turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
