The Hillsboro Eagles will take on the Italy Gladiators at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Hillsboro has given up an average of 8.2 runs per game this season, so hopefully the team got some pitching drills in this week.
On Tuesday, Hillsboro came up short against Venus and fell 12-7.
Carson Barker put in work no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over four innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. That's the fewest earned runs he has allowed over his last five matchups. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with three runs and one triple. He is becoming a predictor of Hillsboro's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 2-1 (and 3-9 when he doesn't).

Daniel Ortiz
| 03/18/25 @ Venus | 4 |
| 02/28/25 vs Connally | 2 |
| 03/14/25 vs Venus | 1 |
| 02/28/25 vs Bishop Reicher Catholic | 1 |
| 02/22/25 vs Cayuga | 1 |
In other batting news, Daniel Ortiz was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-3 with two triples, four RBI, and one run. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Braxton Borde was another key player, scoring a run and stealing a base while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Italy was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They came up short against Abbott, falling 18-4.
Italy saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Xavier DeLaHoya, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-2. DeLaHoya also put up an RBI, which was his first of the season.
Hillsboro's defeat dropped their record down to 5-10. As for Italy, their loss dropped their record down to 1-10.
Hillsboro came out on top in a nail-biter against Italy in their previous meeting last Saturday, sneaking past 11-9. Does Hillsboro have another victory up their sleeve, or will Italy turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps