Hardee was the 8-2 winner over Mulberry when they last played one another back in April of 2019, but their luck changed this time around. The Hardee Wildcats wound up on the wrong side of a tough 14-7 walloping at the hands of the Mulberry Panthers on Wednesday. It was the first time this season that Hardee let down their fans at home.
Leo Marrero made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and got on base in four of his five plate appearances with four RBI and a double. Gage Cartwright was another key contributor, scoring three runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
On Mulberry's side, they got a great performance from Jaden Sweeney as he pitched 4.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and five unearned) runs off four hits. Sweeney has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Cooper Wright, who scored two runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-5. The team also got some help courtesy of Brock Thielen, who scored two runs while going 2-for-4.
Hardee's loss ended a five-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 7-3. As for Mulberry, they are on a roll lately: they've won six of their last eight matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 8-4 record this season.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Hardee will challenge Avon Park at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hardee will be hoping to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each contest than the last. As for Mulberry, they will head out on the road to square off against Lakeland Christian at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Lakeland Christian is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 7.1 runs per game this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
