Preview: Tampa Catholic Crusaders vs. Cardinal Mooney Cougars
The Tampa Catholic Crusaders will head out on the road to square off against the Cardinal Mooney Cougars at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. Tampa Catholic's pitching crew has only allowed 2.7 runs per game this season, so Cardinal Mooney's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Last Wednesday, Tampa Catholic narrowly escaped with a victory as the team sidled past Carrollwood Day 6-4. The win made it back-to-back victories for Tampa Catholic.
Alex Sotiropoulos was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and only two hits while striking out eight over five innings pitched. Sotiropoulos was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, Cal Johnson was excellent, going 3-for-4 with a stolen base, a double, and an RBI. Another player making a difference was Carson Arnold, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Mooney earned a 9-6 win over Clearwater Central Catholic on Thursday.
Keaton White looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (he also didn't allow any walks). He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Mateu Dalmau was incredible, scoring four runs while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances. Joey Siefert was another key contributor, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 3-for-4.
Tampa Catholic's record is now 8-4. As for Cardinal Mooney, they are on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 5-5-1 record this season.
Tampa Catholic couldn't quite finish off Cardinal Mooney in their previous meeting back in April of 2023 and fell 5-3. Can Tampa Catholic avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
