Baseball Game Preview: Central Academy Cougars vs. Sun Valley Spartans

The Central Academy Cougars will take on the Sun Valley Spartans at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Central Academy will roll into the game after a wild two-game stretch: they didn't score any runs on Tuesday, then bounced right back against Lee Park Prep on Thursday. Central Academy was the clear victors by a 13-2 margin over Lee Park Prep. The result was nothing new for the Cougars, who have now won three contests by ten runs or more so far this season.

Meanwhile, Sun Valley is still undefeated this season after their matchup against Lincoln Charter on Wednesday, but Lincoln Charter came as close as anyone has to beating them. Sun Valley never let Lincoln Charter get on the board and left with a 2-0 victory. The two-run effort marked the Spartans' lowest-scoring game of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.

Connor Salerno looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out nine over four innings pitched. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits any time he's pitched this season.

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Coen DeCarlo, who went 2-for-3 with one home run and two RBI. Those two hits gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Jessen Copeland, who went 3-for-4 with one stolen base.

Central Academy has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 3-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.8 runs on average over those games. Sun Valley's win bumped their record up to 5-0.

Central Academy couldn't quite get it done against Sun Valley when the teams last played back in March of 2015 as they fell 5-1. Will Central Academy have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.