The A.J. Ellender Patriots will head out to square off against the Hanson Memorial Tigers at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. A.J. Ellender has now lost seven straight, leaving the team hunting for their first win since March 25.
A.J. Ellender fell victim to St. James and their airtight pitching crew on Friday. They came up short against the Wildcats, falling 10-0. That's two games in a row now that the Patriots have lost by exactly ten runs.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Hanson Memorial, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Thursday. They blew past St. Martinville 13-0 on Saturday. Hanson Memorial hasn't had any issues with St. Martinville recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive win against them.
Owen Vacarella made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over four innings pitched. He has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. He also put up a double, which was his first of the season.
In other batting news, Hanson Memorial got a big performance out of Cooper Vacarella, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-4. That's the most hits Vacarella has posted since back in February. Brennan Thibodaux was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-2.
Hanson Memorial always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .621. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as St. Martinville only posted an OBP of .318.
Hanson Memorial pushed their record up to 11-13-1 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.5 runs on average over those games. As for A.J. Ellender, their defeat dropped their record down to 8-22.
Everything went A.J. Ellender's way against Hanson Memorial in their previous matchup back in March of 2023, as A.J. Ellender made off with a 10-4 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Patriots since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
