Baseball Game Preview: Ripon Indians vs. Manteca Buffaloes

The Ripon Indians will square off against the Manteca Buffaloes at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Ripon made up a huge gap compared to their last game against Beyer, but still couldn't quite topple them. Ripon put the hurt on Beyer with a sharp 9-2 victory on Wednesday. The win was some much needed relief for the Indians as it spelled an end to their three-game losing streak.

Brayden McDowell

Runs Batted In (Career)

02/26/25 @ Beyer	4
03/14/24 @ Modesto Christian	2
02/21/25 @ Central Valley	1
02/17/25 @ Merced	1
03/26/24 @ Riverbank	1

The team relied heavily on Brayden McDowell, who went 2-for-3 with four RBI and one run. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Isaiah Martinez was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-3.

Meanwhile, Manteca earned a 7-3 victory over Tracy on Wednesday.

Jeremy Cross looked comfortable as he tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Manteca's win was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Noah Navarro, who scored two runs while going 1-for-4. Another was Edward Anthony, who scored a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.

Ripon's victory bumped their record up to 2-3. As for Manteca, their win bumped their record up to 5-1.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Ripon has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Manteca struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.