Baseball Recap: National Trail Victorious

National Trail won the last time they faced Tri-Village and things went their way on Wednesday too. The Blazers came out on top against the Patriots by a score of 8-5. That's two games straight that the Blazers have won by exactly three runs.

Mason Leal

Batters Struck Out

05/14/25 @ Tri-Village	9
05/13/25 vs Fairlawn	0
05/06/25 @ Newton Local	3
04/19/25 vs Franklin Monroe	5
04/12/25 @ Tri-County North	16

Mason Leal made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over six innings while giving up four earned runs off seven hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in April. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-4 with two stolen bases and two runs. He has become a key player for National Trail: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 4-13 otherwise.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kellen Laird, who went 3-for-4 with three RBI, two runs, and one stolen base. He is becoming a predictor of National Trail's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 2-13 when he doesn't). Westin Lipps was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two doubles, one stolen base, and two RBI.

The victory made it two in a row for National Trail and bumps their season record up to 7-13. That said, the team wasn't facing the toughest opposition over that stretch, as it included 3-17 Fairlawn and 7-12 Tri-Village. As for Tri-Village, they have been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 7-12 record this season.

Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. National Trail will challenge Lehman Catholic at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. As for Tri-Village, they will face off against Fairlawn at 5:00 p.m. on Friday.