The Winter Park Wildcats will face off against the West Orange Warriors at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Winter Park comes in on nine and West Orange on ten.
While Winter Park's win against Lake Brantley wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Wildcats had just enough and edged out the Patriots 6-5 on Monday.
Winter Park got a great performance from Palmer Edwards as he tossed 5.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off nine hits. Those hits marked the first that Edwards allowed this season.
At the plate, Winter Park's victory was truly a team effort as six different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Isaac Incinelli, who fired off two home runs, three RBI, and two doubles while going 4-for-4. Those two home runs gave Incinelli a new career-high. Hayden Montanez was another, scoring two runs while going 2-for-4.
Winter Park hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Lake Brantley struck out six times.
Meanwhile, West Orange got the win against Dr. Phillips on Friday by a conclusive 9-2.
Nicolas Caso and Wrigley Bates dominated on the mound. Caso pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits, while Bates pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Caso has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than one earned run any time he's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, Miguel Acosta was incredible, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and one double. Another player making a difference was Nathan Rich, who scored a run and stole a base while going 3-for-4.
West Orange's win was their seventh straight at home, which pushed their record up to 18-4. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.0 runs over those games. As for Winter Park, their win bumped their record up to 19-3.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Winter Park has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.1 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like West Orange struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.8 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Winter Park came out on top in a nail-biter against West Orange in their previous matchup back in March, sneaking past 1-0. Do the Wildcats have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Warriors turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
