Baseball Preview: Nature Coast Tech Sharks vs. Hernando Leopards
The Nature Coast Tech Sharks will play host again on Saturday to welcome the Hernando Leopards, where first pitch is scheduled at 7:00 p.m. The pair have allowed few runs on average, (Nature Coast Tech: 2.5, Hernando: 2.8) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Nature Coast Tech is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Wednesday. They walked away with a 5-1 win over Satellite.
Nature Coast Tech saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Nate Leavitt, who scored two runs while going 1-for-3. Another player making a difference was Joey Vancleave, who went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Meanwhile, Hernando's hitters rose to the challenge against a Hornets pitching crew that boasted an average of only 3.96 runs allowed on Wednesday. Hernando came out on top against Bishop Moore by a score of 11-7.
Bryce Saltsman was excellent, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 1-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of Kaine Ellis, who went 2-for-5 with two RBI and a double.
Nature Coast Tech is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last ten contests, which provided a nice bump to their 19-6 record this season. As for Hernando, their victory bumped their record up to 18-9.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Nature Coast Tech has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Hernando struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.9. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Nature Coast Tech took their win against Hernando when the teams last played on Thursday by a conclusive 7-0. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Hernando's Ryan Miller, who struck out six batters over 5.1 innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits (and only one walk). Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Nature Coast Tech still be able to contain Miller? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
