The Boone Braves will head out to take on the Innovation Bulls at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Boone and Freedom meet (four straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Friday. Boone came out on top against Freedom by a score of 7-3. The victory continues a trend for the Braves in their matchups with the Patriots: they've now won three in a row.
Boone got a great performance from Leo Reina as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out nine over five innings pitched. That's the fewest hits Reina has allowed since back in February.
Micah Arroyo
| 03/28/25 @ Freedom | 3 |
| 03/25/25 @ South Lake | 2 |
| 02/25/25 @ West Orange | 2 |
| 03/13/25 vs Dr. Phillips | 1 |
| 03/11/25 vs University | 1 |
At the plate, Boone let Micah Arroyo and Luke Barry run wild. Arroyo scored three runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3, while Barry scored a run while going 3-for-4. Those three runs gave Arroyo a new career-high. James Cooper also deserves some recognition as he got his first hits of the season.
Boone kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That's the most hits they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Innovation made easy work of University on Friday and carried off a 14-2 win. Considering the Bulls have won five matches by more than nine runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Hunter Lopez looked comfortable as he pitched three innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two hits in five consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Sebastian Perez was a standout: he went a perfect 1-for-1 with two stolen bases, four RBI, and two runs. He has become a key player for Innovation: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two stolen bases, but 3-6 otherwise. The team also got some help courtesy of Tyler Nunez, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with three doubles, two runs, and one stolen base.
Boone pushed their record up to 7-8 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. A key ingredient in that success has been their performance when it comes to hits: they averaged an imposing 9.67 hits in those games compared to only four in the others. As for Innovation, they now have a winning record of 7-6.
