The Park Center/Columbia Heights/Maranatha Pirates will head out on the road to face off against the Champlin Park Rebels at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Park Center/Columbia Heights/Maranatha is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.3 runs per game this season.
Park Center/Columbia Heights/Maranatha will roll into the game after a wild two-game stretch: they didn't score any runs on Wednesday, then bounced right back against Richfield on Friday. The Pirates put the hurt on the Spartans with a sharp 11-1 win.
Nolan Schneider was a major factor no matter where he played. He pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Schneider was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with two stolen bases and one run. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in April of 2024.
In other pitching news, Cooper Peterson looked comfortable as he tossed three innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run any time he's pitched this season.
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Beau Bratsch, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs, one triple, and one stolen base. Will Courchane also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
Park Center/Columbia Heights/Maranatha always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .581. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Richfield only posted an OBP of .250.
Meanwhile, Champlin Park started off well but failed to capitalize on an early lead against East Grand Forks. They fell just short of the Green Wave by a score of 4-2 on Friday.
Park Center/Columbia Heights/Maranatha pushed their record up to 4-2 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Champlin Park, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-3.
Park Center/Columbia Heights/Maranatha suffered a grim 8-0 defeat to Champlin Park when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Can the Pirates avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
