The Marathon Dolphins will head out to challenge the Fort Meade Miners at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
Marathon is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They never let Glades Day get on the board and left with a 15-0 victory. Considering the Dolphins have won 12 games by more than six runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Bryan Broche was incredible, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 2-for-2. That's the most hits he has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Jason Stubblefield Jr., who scored a run while going 2-for-3.
Marathon always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .606. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Glades Day only posted an OBP of .143.
Fort Meade not only won on Tuesday, but they posted their biggest win since March 11th. They put the hurt on Moore Haven with a sharp 10-0 win. The high-scoring performance was a welcome turnaround for the Miners' hitters, who had struggled in the games prior.
Matthew Pheiffer and Owen Harrell made a splash while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Pheiffer tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Harrell didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out eight over four innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Fort Meade is undefeated when he allows at most one earned run, but 10-11 otherwise. At the plate, Pheiffer went 1-for-2 with one triple and one RBI, while Harrell scored a run and stole two bases while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, Fort Meade let Eli Harrell and DeMarion Abrams run wild. Harrell scored two runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-3, while Abrams went a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and one double. Abrams is becoming a predictor of Fort Meade's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 9-11 when he doesn't). Caleb Hermelbracht was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
Marathon is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 17-9 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.1 runs on average over those games. As for Fort Meade, they moved to 15-11 with that win, which also ended their four-game losing streak.
Fort Meade's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Marathon hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .348. It's a different story for Fort Meade, though, as they've only averaged .253. Will they be able to contain Marathon's hitters?
Marathon couldn't quite get it done against Fort Meade in their previous matchup back in March as they fell 6-3. Can the Dolphins avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
