The Somerset Academy Panthers will square off against the Hialeah Thoroughbreds at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Having struggled with six losses in a row, Somerset Academy turned things around against Monsignor Pace on Wednesday. They walked away with a 7-4 win over the Spartans.
Kareem Amer
| 04/02/25 @ Monsignor Pace | 6 |
| 03/28/25 @ NSU University | 3 |
| 03/25/25 @ Dwyer | 1 |
| 03/19/25 @ Cardinal Gibbons | 5 |
| 03/05/25 @ Coral Springs Charter | 1 |
| + 2 more games |
Kareem Amer looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out six over four innings pitched. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in February.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Matthew Fari?as, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-3. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in doubles (two). Jon Mora was another key player, scoring two runs while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Hialeah). They blew past Downtown Doral 18-5 on Thursday. The victory was a breath of fresh air for the Thoroughbreds as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.
Christopher Reyes was a standout: he got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one home run, two stolen bases, and three runs. The team also got some help courtesy of Alex Perez, who went 2-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and one triple.
Hialeah was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .385. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .321 or higher in five consecutive matches.
Somerset Academy's win bumped their record up to 9-13. As for Hialeah, their victory bumped their record up to 5-8.
Somerset Academy's speedy runners might be the difference in Saturday's game. The Panthers have been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.6 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Hialeah, though, as they've been averaging only 1.1 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will Somerset Academy continue to outrun the ball?
Somerset Academy was able to grind out a solid win over Hialeah when the teams last played back in April of 2018, winning 5-1. Do the Panthers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Thoroughbreds turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
