The Valparaiso Vikings are taking a road trip to take on the Columbus East Olympians at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Valparaiso is coming into the game hot, having won their last five games.
On Thursday, Valparaiso sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 4-2 victory over Hobart. That's two games straight that the Vikings have won by exactly two runs.
Zach Troxel
| 04/24/25 @ Hobart | 1 |
| 04/11/25 @ Munster | 1 |
Zach Troxel tossed a big game, tossing six innings while giving up just one earned run off eight hits. He also tossed a walk, which is notable because Valparaiso is undefeated when he allows at most one walk, but 3-4 otherwise.
On the hitting side, Valparaiso saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Trevor Fenters, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one run and one RBI. Another was Gabe Bush, who went 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Columbus East didn't have quite enough to beat Franklin Community on Thursday and fell 3-2. The Olympians have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Columbus East also got a good showing from Drew Rotert, who didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit over four innings pitched. Rotert has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than two hits in five consecutive appearances.
At the plate, J.D. Rotert made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and got on base in all four of his plate appearances with five stolen bases and one run.
Valparaiso pushed their record up to 6-4 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. Those road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Columbus East, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-7.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. Valparaiso has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.7 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Columbus East struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 4.7 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Everything went Valparaiso's way against Columbus East in their previous meeting back in April of 2023, as Valparaiso made off with a 12-2 win. Will the Vikings repeat their success, or do the Olympians have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
