Baseball Game Preview: John Bapst Memorial Crusaders vs. Old Town Coyotes

The John Bapst Memorial Crusaders will square off against the Old Town Coyotes at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this contest.

On Friday, John Bapst Memorial came up short against Belfast and fell 6-3. The defeat continues a trend for the Crusaders in their meetings with the Lions: they've now lost four in a row.

Meanwhile, Old Town faced Bangor in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. The Coyotes fell just short of the Rams by a score of 7-6. The Coyotes have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Julian Duty put in work no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over six innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits. Duty was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with one run and one double. That double was his first of the season.

In other batting news, Nate Baker made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 2-for-4 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run. Another player making a difference was Ethan Closson, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs.

John Bapst Memorial's loss dropped their record down to 2-6. As for Old Town, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-4.

John Bapst Memorial came out on top in a nail-biter against Old Town when the teams last played on Thursday, sneaking past 6-4. Will the Crusaders repeat their success, or do the Coyotes have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.