The Heritage Patriots will head out on the road to face off against the Lakeland Lakers at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (Heritage 1.8, Lakeland 3.4) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Heritage proved they can win big on Wednesday (they won by 20) and on Thursday they proved they can win the close ones too. They had just enough and edged out Norwell 4-3. The win was familiar territory for the Patriots, who have now won three matches in a row.
Elijah Rauner
| 04/17/25 @ Norwell | 1 |
| 04/10/25 @ Van Wert | 0 |
| 04/01/25 @ New Haven | 1 |
Elijah Rauner made a splash no matter where he played. He tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with one stolen base and one run. That stolen base marked the first that he has snagged this season.
Rauner wasn't the only one making solid contact as six players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Iestyn Roe, who went 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI. Lucas Taylor also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Lakeland). Everything went their way against Churubusco on Tuesday as they made off with a 21-3 victory. The Lakers haven't had any issues with the Eagles recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive win against them.
Garrett Pieri was a standout: he got on base in all four of his plate appearances with one home run, four runs, and four RBI. Those four runs gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Levi Cook, who went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two doubles, and one stolen base.
Lakeland kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 17 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least ten hits in three consecutive contests.
Heritage's record now sits at 4-1. As for Lakeland, their record is now 6-1.
Wednesday's game will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Heritage hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .336. However, it's not like Lakeland struggles in that department as they've averaged .449. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.
