Liberty came tearing into Tuesday's match with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 3.5 runs) and they left with even more momentum. They came out on top in a nail-biter against the Antioch Panthers and snuck past 6-5. For Liberty, this counts as revenge for the 5-1 defeat Antioch walked away with the last time they faced one another back in April of 2023.
Cruz Van Slyke was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching an inning while giving up no earned runs or hits (he also didn't allow any walks). Van Slyke was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 2-for-4.
In other pitching news, Tristan Ainsworth looked comfortable as he struck out six batters over 3.1 innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits (and only one walk).
Back at the plate, Liberty let Jake Ulrich and Dylan Amaral loose on the outfield. Ulrich got on base in four of his five plate appearances with a stolen base and two RBI, while Amaral scored a run while going 3-for-3. Zach Madrigal was another key contributor, going 2-for-4 with a stolen base.
On Antioch's side, they saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Anthony Sanchez, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with a double and an RBI. Another player making a difference was Cristian Bajjalieha, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Liberty now has a winning record of 9-8. As for Antioch, they have not been sharp recently as the team has lost nine of their last ten matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 5-10 record this season.
The teams didn't have to wait long for a rematch: Liberty beat Antioch by a score of 15-10.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
