The Manalapan Braves will head out to square off against Ranney at 3:45 p.m. on Monday.
Manalapan is headed into the contest having just suffered their closest defeat since May 14, 2024 on Saturday. They fell just short of Robbinsville by a score of 4-2. The Braves have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Manalapan got a good showing from Peter Rispoli, who pitched 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit.
On the hitting side, Manalapan saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Anthony Foti, who went 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI. That double was Foti's first of the season.
Meanwhile, Ranney entered their tilt with Middletown South on Thursday with four consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with five. They were the clear victors by a 16-1 margin over the Eagles. The result was nothing new for Ranney, who have now won three matchups by eight runs or more so far this season.
Nate Fuller made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with three RBI and one run. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, Ranney got a massive performance out of Curt Chropuvka, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. Ricky Lopez was another key player, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases, three RBI, and two runs.
Ranney always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .606. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive games.
Ranney pushed their record up to 7-3 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.0 runs over those games. As for Manalapan, they now have a losing record of 5-6.
