Mount Carmel is on a four-game streak of home wins, while Tamaqua is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The RED TORNADOES will welcome the Blue Raiders at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
Mount Carmel barely beat Milton the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The RED TORNADOES were the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over the Black Panthers on Friday. Considering the RED TORNADOES have won five matchups by more than seven runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Jace Stever tossed a big game, striking out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Jon Morgante, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run. Another player making a difference was Brayden Brinkash, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two RBI.
Mount Carmel was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .389. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .323 or higher in six consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Tamaqua). They came out on top against Conrad Weiser by a score of 13-9 on Thursday.
Cooper Ansbach made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Ansbach was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-4 with one triple and two RBI. That triple marked the first that he has hit this season.
In other batting news, Luke Kane was incredible, getting on base in all five of his plate appearances with four runs, two stolen bases, and three RBI. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Mason Ligenza, who got on base in three of his five plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs.
Mount Carmel has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won eight of their last nine games. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-2-1 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Tamaqua, their victory bumped their record up to 15-1.
Both Mount Carmel and Tamaqua just can't seem to miss. The RED TORNADOES have been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.1 hits per game. However, it's not like Tamaqua struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 4 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Mount Carmel skirted past Tamaqua 6-4 in their previous meeting back in May of 2024. Will the RED TORNADOES repeat their success, or do the Blue Raiders have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.