The New Palestine Dragons will face off against the Roncalli Royals at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
New Palestine is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Saturday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Indian Creek a 10-0 shutout. The victory was familiar territory for the Dragons, who have now won eight games in a row.
The team relied heavily on Kingston Hedges, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two RBI and one run. The team also got some help courtesy of Jackson Kamp, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with two RBI and one double.
New Palestine always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .586. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Indian Creek only posted an OBP of .238.
Meanwhile, Roncalli won against Shelbyville on Thursday with seven runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Saturday. The Royals put the hurt on Greenwood with a sharp 7-1 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Royals.
Roncalli got a big performance out of Rudy Schoettle, who went 1-for-3 with two stolen bases and two runs. That's the most runs Schoettle has posted since back in May. Sam Roeder was another key player, going 1-for-3 with three stolen bases.
Roncalli's victory bumped their record up to 24-4. As for New Palestine, their win bumped their record up to 22-3.
Monday's match might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. New Palestine has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .431. However, it's not like Roncalli struggles in that department as they've averaged .450. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
New Palestine couldn't quite get it done against Roncalli in their previous meeting back in May of 2018 as they fell 13-8. Can the Dragons avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
