The Holly Wildcats will head out on the road to challenge the Swink Lions at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
It was a proper cat-fight when Holly duked it out with Cheyenne Wells on Friday. The Wildcats were the clear victors by a 13-2 margin over the Tigers. The victory was nothing new for the Wildcats as they're now sitting on eight straight.
Truman King
| 04/15/25 vs Granada | 4 |
| 04/18/25 vs Cheyenne Wells | 3 |
| 04/15/25 vs Granada | 2 |
| 04/11/25 vs McClave | 2 |
| 04/11/25 vs McClave | 2 |
| + 3 more games |
Truman King and Devin Eaton made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, King struck out ten batters over 5.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits. Meanwhile, Eaton pitched 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. King has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in seven consecutive appearances. At the plate, King went 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and two RBI, while Eaton went 4-for-5 with four runs, one stolen base, and one double. King has become a key player for Holly: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 4-6 otherwise.
In other batting news, Edson Noriega and Drayden Williams did most of the damage at the plate: Noriega went 4-for-5 with three RBI and one run, while Williams went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI. Williams is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last five games he's played. Another player making a difference was Colton Deforest, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Holly kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 17 hits. That's the most hits they've posted since back in April of 2024.
Meanwhile, while Swink put up plenty of runs on Thursday, the same can't be said for Manzanola. The Lions put the hurt on the Bobcats with a sharp 20-0 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Lions.
Noah Pearson and Nate Cabrera made a big impact no matter where they played. Throwing, Pearson pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Cabrera struck out six batters over two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). At bat, Pearson went 2-for-4 with three RBI, one run, and one double, while Cabrera got on base in all four of his plate appearances with four runs, two stolen bases, and two RBI. That's the most RBI Pearson has posted since back in May of 2024.
In other batting news, Swink got a massive performance out of Nick Paolucci, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with four runs, four RBI, and one triple. Those four hits gave Paolucci a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Luke Hanagan, who went 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and one stolen base.
Holly's victory was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-6. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.2 runs on average over those games. As for Swink, their record now sits at 9-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Holly has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Swink struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.8 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Everything went Holly's way against Swink in their previous meeting back in May of 2019, as Holly made off with a 10-3 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Wildcats since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
