Palma lost against St. Francis last Wednesday, and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Friday. The Palma Chieftains fell just short of the St. Francis Sharks by a score of 8-7. The defeat unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Palma in their matchups with St. Francis: they've now lost five in a row.
Rocco Razzeca stepped up to lead a balanced group of hitters: he scored a run and stole two bases while going 2-for-2. Kaleb Shannon was another key contributor, scoring a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Even though they lost, Palma didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with 11 strikeouts. That's the most strikeouts they've managed all season.
On St. Francis' side, Micah Cervantes was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed four innings while giving up just two earned runs off five hits. Cervantes was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with a home run, two runs, and two RBI.
In other batting news, Evan Dyer was incredible, going 2-for-3 with a home run, two runs, and two RBI. Another player making a difference was JR Pedro Ibarra, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with a stolen base and two RBI.
Palma now has a losing record at 7-8. As for St. Francis, the victory (which was their fifth in a row) raised their record to 12-4.
Palma will be playing at home against Monte Vista Christian at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Monte Vista Christian is coming into the matchup with 11 straight losses on the road, meaning Palma will have to defend against a squad hungry for a win. As for St. Francis, they will look to defend their home field on Tuesday against Monterey at 4:00 p.m. St. Francis is facing Monterey at the right time seeing as Monterey is stuck on a four-game losing streak.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
