The Dayton Greendevils will challenge the Newport Wildcats at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Dayton will be strutting in after a win while Newport will be coming in after a defeat.
Dayton is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on Robertson County with a sharp 11-1 victory on Wednesday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Greendevils considering their one-run performance the contest before.
Chad Nickell was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only two hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched. Nickell was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two doubles, two RBI, and one run.
In other batting news, Elias Lopez was incredible, going 2-for-3 with four stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. Braylen Williams was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with one stolen base and one run.
Dayton always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .567. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Newport was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their 44th straight loss dating back to last season. They came up short against Highlands, falling 20-0.
Newport saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Donovan Macario, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base. Macario is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last three games he's played.
Dayton's first win this season bumped their record up to 1-11. As for Newport, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-19.
Everything went Dayton's way against Newport in their previous meeting back in May of 2024, as Dayton made off with an 18-0 victory. Will the Greendevils repeat their success, or do the Wildcats have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
