The Cloverdale Eagles are packing up and heading out on the road for their first away game this season: they will challenge the Healdsburg Greyhounds at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Cloverdale proved they can win big on Wednesday (they won by ten) and on Friday they proved they can win the close ones too. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Sonoma Academy, sneaking past 11-10. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Eagles have posted since April 16, 2024.
Cloverdale saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Austin Axell, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-5. Vann Randolph was another, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, Healdsburg gave up the first runs on Friday, but they didn't let that get them down. They blew past Credo 8-1. The win continues a trend for the Greyhounds in their matchups with the Gryphon: they've now won four in a row.
Alex Mauro-Manos was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over five innings pitched. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in April of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 2-for-2.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Hayden Mariani, who scored two runs and stole Four bases. while going 2-for-4. Those four stolen bases gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Isaiah Robles, who scored a run and stole Three bases. while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
Cloverdale now has a winning record of 2-1. As for Healdsburg, they now also have a winning record of 2-1.
Healdsburg's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Cloverdale has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .470. It's a different story for Healdsburg, though, as they've only averaged .337. Will they be able to contain Cloverdale's hitters?
Cloverdale came out on top in a nail-biter against Healdsburg in their previous matchup back in April of 2023, sneaking past 3-1. Will Cloverdale repeat their success, or does Healdsburg have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
