The Tamaqua Blue Raiders will venture away from home to take on the Mount Carmel RED TORNADOES at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Tamaqua is coming into the contest hot, having won their last seven games.
Tamaqua is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They walked away with a 13-9 victory over Conrad Weiser on Thursday.
Cooper Ansbach was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up a single earned run in eight consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-4 with one triple and two RBI. That triple was his first of the season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Luke Kane, who got on base in all five of his plate appearances with four runs, two stolen bases, and three RBI. What's more, he posted three hits, the most he's had since back in March. Another player making a difference was Mason Ligenza, who got on base in three of his five plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs.
Tamaqua always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .578. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in four consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Mount Carmel made easy work of Milton on Friday and carried off an 11-1 win. The RED TORNADOES might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five games by eight runs or more this season.
Mount Carmel also got a great performance from Jace Stever as he struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits.
On the hitting side, Jon Morgante was incredible, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run. Brayden Brinkash was another key player, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with two RBI.
Mount Carmel is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-2-1 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Tamaqua, they pushed their record up to 15-1 with the win, which was their eighth straight at home.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Tamaqua has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.1 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Mount Carmel struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Tamaqua couldn't quite finish off Mount Carmel in their previous matchup back in May of 2024 and fell 6-4. Can the Blue Raiders avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
