The North Pole Patriots will be playing in front of their home fans against the West Valley Wolf Pack at 1:15 p.m. on Saturday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
North Pole is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Alaska's top teams: Monroe Catholic, who was ranked 16th in their home state at the time (North Pole was ranked 14th). North Pole never let Monroe Catholic onto the board and left with an 18-0 victory on Wednesday. For those curious, yes, that was the biggest win North Pole has managed all season.
Caleb Korhonen made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and only two hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched. Korhonen was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with three runs, three RBI, and a triple.
In other batting news, North Pole let Ryan Martinez and Pavel Kostov loose on the outfield. Martinez scored four runs and stole three bases while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances, while Kostov scored two runs and stole three bases while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances. Martinez is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now stolen at least one in the last seven games he's played. Olan Tucker was another key contributor, going 1-for-4 with four RBI, a triple, and a run.
Meanwhile, West Valley waltzed into their game on Wednesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They blew past the Hawks 15-0. That 15 run margin sets a new team best for West Valley this season.
North Pole now has a winning record of 6-5-2. As for West Valley, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 4-2-1 record this season.
North Pole couldn't quite finish off West Valley in their previous matchup back in May of 2023 and fell 5-3. Can North Pole avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
