Moose
| 05/23/25 @ Kenai Central | 3 |
| 05/22/25 @ Homer | 7 |
| 05/20/25 @ Grace Christian | 16 |
| 05/19/25 vs Wasilla | 7 |
| 05/16/25 @ Houston | 9 |
| + 12 more games |
The Palmer Moose will venture away from home to square off against the Soldotna Stars at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. Palmer is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.6 runs per game this season.
Palmer is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Alaska's top teams: Kenai Central, who was ranked ninth at the time (Palmer was ranked 12th). The Moose lost 11-3 to the Kardinals on Friday. The defeat continues a trend for the Moose in their meetings with the Kardinals: they've now lost five in a row.
Palmer saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Tristan Barrey, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI.
Meanwhile, Soldotna had already won seven in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 9.7 runs) and they went ahead and made it eight on Friday. They were the clear victors by a 10-0 margin over the Hawks. The Stars' pitching crew has been rock solid lately; the team hasn't given up a run in their last three matches.
Soldotna also got a great performance from Brenden Theel as he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out ten over five innings pitched. Those ten strikeouts gave Theel a new career-high.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Wyatt Gagnon, who went 1-for-2 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI. Those three runs gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Matthew Schilling, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with three stolen bases and two runs.
Soldotna hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least five batters in five consecutive games.
Soldotna pushed their record up to 11-9-2 with the win, which was their third straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 14.0 runs over those games. As for Palmer, their loss was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 8-1 and their overall record down to 10-7.
Saturday's contest might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Palmer has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .436. However, it's not like Soldotna struggles in that department as they've averaged .433. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Palmer came up short against Soldotna in their previous matchup back in May of 2024, falling 10-5. Can the Moose avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
