Palmetto Ridge extended their winning streak to three on Thursday, bumping them up to 9-8. They never let the Golden Gate Titans get on the board and left with a 10-0 win. That's the second time they've managed to beat them this season, as they also won 10-5 back in February.
Gregory Carrasco was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out seven over five innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Palmetto Ridge is 4-2 when he allows at most two earned runs, but 5-6 otherwise. Carrasco was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with one run and one RBI.
Nico Benedetto
| 03/26/26 vs Golden Gate | 4 |
| 03/23/26 @ Lely | 4 |
| 03/20/26 vs Immokalee | 2 |
| 03/10/26 vs IMG Academy White | 1 |
| 02/23/26 @ Barron Collier | 1 |
In other batting news, Palmetto Ridge got a massive performance out of Nico Benedetto, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with four stolen bases and three runs. Benedetto is becoming a predictor of the Bears' success: when he posts at least two stolen bases the team is undefeated (and 6-8 when he doesn't). Jayden Herrera was another key player, going 3-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Palmetto Ridge always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .594. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive games.
As for Golden Gate, their loss was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 6-12. Having soared to a lofty 20 runs in the game before, their shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
On Golden Gate's side, they saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Dylan Nieves, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base. Nieves has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played.
Coming up, Palmetto Ridge will be playing at home against First Baptist Academy at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. As for Golden Gate, they will head out on the road to square off against Gateway Charter at 7:00 p.m. on Monday.
