After flying high against Yamhill-Carlton last Friday, Taft came back down to earth. The Taft Tigers fell just short of the Santiam Christian Eagles by a score of 4-3 on Monday. Taft was given a dose of their own medicine in this game as Santiam Christian apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played back in May of 2023.
Zack Hankins put in work no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 16 batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. Hankins has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't pitched less than five innings in four consecutive pitching appearances. Hankins was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-5.
Hankins wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Juan Hernandez, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 2-for-5.
Taft's loss dropped their record down to 6-6. As for Santiam Christian, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 5-4 record this season.
The teams didn't have to wait long for a rematch: Taft beat Santiam Christian by a score of 7-3.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
