Baseball Game Preview: Menendez Falcons vs. Ridgeview Panthers

Menendez is 1-9 against Ridgeview since March of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Falcons will be playing in front of their home fans against the Panthers at 6:30 p.m. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.

If Menendez beats Ridgeview with five runs on Thursday, it's going to be the team's new lucky number: they've won their past two matchups with that exact score. The Falcons had just enough and edged out Ponte Vedra 5-4. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Falcons.

Tripp Barkoskie

Runs

04/01/25 vs Ponte Vedra	2
03/25/25 @ Matanzas	2
02/27/25 @ Beachside	2
02/25/25 vs Matanzas	2
03/31/25 vs Bell County	1
+ 6 more games

Tripp Barkoskie was excellent, scoring two runs while going 2-for-4. He has become a key player for Menendez: the team is 3-1 when he posts at least two runs, but 7-10 otherwise.

Meanwhile, Ridgeview had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 7 runs) and they went ahead and made it three on Tuesday. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 5-4 W against the Golden Eagles.

Waylon Smith looked comfortable as he tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent for a while: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in nine consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Ridgeview's win was truly a team effort as four different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Jachob Kaplitz, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.

Menendez's victory bumped their record up to 10-11. As for Ridgeview, their win bumped their record up to 8-10.

Menendez couldn't quite get it done against Ridgeview when the teams last played back in March of 2023 as they fell 9-6. Will the Falcons have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.