Baseball Game Preview: Woodside Wildcats vs. San Mateo Bearcats

For the second straight game, Woodside will face off against San Mateo. The Wildcats will challenge the Bearcats at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday.

It was a proper cat-fight when Woodside faced off against San Mateo on Tuesday. The Wildcats fell 4-1 to the Bearcats. Wildcats fans who chose to attend the game sure picked the wrong one: it was the first time the team's lost against the Bearcats since on Tuesday.

For San Mateo's part, Christian Louie spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned run on three hits and racked up eight Ks. The Bearcats are 9-3 when Louie allows two or fewer earned runs, but 3-11 otherwise.

On the hitting side, San Mateo's win was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Travis Okimura, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with one RBI. Michael Lackey also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.

Woodside has traveled a rocky road recently, having lost eight of their last ten contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 10-15 record this season. As for San Mateo, their victory ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 12-14.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Woodside has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.9 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like San Mateo struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.