North East hasn't had much luck against Fairview recently, but that could start to change on Wednesday. The Grape Pickers will head out on the road to square off against the Tigers at 4:00 p.m. North East's pitching crew has only allowed 3.4 runs per game this season, so Fairview's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
North East's usually-dominant pitching crew will be looking to make up for Monday's struggle, when Girard hitters got past them. The Grape Pickers fell 11-8 to the Yellowjackets on Monday.
Jerek Turlij put in work no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). What's more, he gave up only zero walks, the fewest he's had since back in May of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base and two RBI.
In other batting news, Caleb Triana was cooking despite his team's loss, getting on base in four of his five plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI. Colton Owens was another key player, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with one run and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Fairview waltzed into their matchup on Monday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They came out on top against the Beavers by a score of 7-3.
The team relied heavily on Liam Hermann, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one RBI. Those three runs gave him a new career-high. Antonio Zona also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
Fairview pushed their record up to 9-3 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for North East, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-3.
North East came up short against Fairview in their previous meeting back in April, falling 7-4. Can the Grape Pickers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
