Wayne hasn't had much luck against Honeoye Falls-Lima recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Eagles will look to defend their home field against the Cougars at 5:00 p.m. After the two teams made easy work of their previous opponents, one won't be so lucky on Friday.
Wayne's pitching crew heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Monday. Everything went their way against Newark as they made off with an 8-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Eagles, who have now won six matchups by six runs or more so far this season.
Parker Holtz looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in eight consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Caleb Celso and Michael Grasso did most of the damage at the plate: Celso went 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI, while Grasso went 1-for-2 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI. That's the most hits Celso has posted since back in April.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Honeoye Falls-Lima). They were the clear victors by a 17-3 margin over Wayland-Cohocton on Tuesday. The victory continues a trend for the Cougars in their matchups with the Eagles: they've now won three in a row.
Jacob Weber made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out seven batters over four innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off three hits. Weber was also big at the plate, going 2-for-5 with one run and one double.
In other batting news, Honeoye Falls-Lima got a massive performance out of Owen Kearney, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Harrison Houle, who went 2-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs.
Honeoye Falls-Lima always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .615. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Wayne has been performing well recently as they've won seven of their last nine contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-7 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.1 runs over those games. As for Honeoye Falls-Lima, their victory bumped their record up to 6-15.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Wayne has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Honeoye Falls-Lima struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Wayne skirted past Honeoye Falls-Lima 1-0 in their previous meeting on May 7th. Will the Eagles repeat their success, or do the Cougars have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
