Baseball Recap: Union Catholic Makes It Eight in a Row at Home

Union Catholic barely beat New Providence the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Vikings were the clear victors by an 8-2 margin over the Pioneers on Thursday. That's the second time they've managed to beat them this season, as they also won 4-2 back in April.

Chris Tortorella spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned (and one unearned) run on six hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Union Catholic got a massive performance out of Chris Wilson, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two stolen bases, three runs, and two doubles. Wilson has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last four times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Josiah Shapre, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three stolen bases and three runs.

Union Catholic was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .387. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as New Providence only posted a batting average of .120.

Union Catholic pushed their record up to 9-4 with the win, which was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.4 runs over those games. As for New Providence, they are on a six-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 2-12.

Looking ahead, Union Catholic will square off against Bayonne at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The Vikings are facing the Bees at the right time seeing as the Bees are stuck on a four-game losing streak. As for New Providence, they will face off against Scotch Plains-Fanwood at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. The last three games the Raiders have played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.