Zephyrhills hasn't had much luck against Wiregrass Ranch recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Zephyrhills Bulldogs will look to defend their home field against the Wiregrass Ranch Bulls at 7:00 p.m. Zephyrhills will be strutting in after a victory while Wiregrass Ranch will be coming in after a defeat.
Zephyrhills took a loss when they played away from home on Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They came out on top against Fivay by a score of 10-0 (the very same score they lost by in their prior game). Considering the Bulldogs' hitters had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
Colin O'Malley
| 03/03/25 @ Gulf | 2 |
| 02/21/25 vs IMG Academy Blue | 2 |
| 02/14/25 @ Mitchell | 1 |
Colin O'Malley made a splash no matter where he played. He didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out ten over five innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Zephyrhills is 3-1 when he allows at most two earned runs, but 1-7 otherwise. O'Malley was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. That stolen base was his first of the season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Traiton Costello, who went 2-for-3 with three stolen bases and two RBI. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in stolen bases.
Meanwhile, Wiregrass Ranch has relied on a stalwart pitchers averaging 3.7 runs allowed per game, but that average took a hit on Tuesday. They came up short against Sunlake, falling 11-3. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Bulls have suffered since April 30, 2024.
Wiregrass Ranch saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Carson Kirkland, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with one double.
Zephyrhills' win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 4-8. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Wiregrass Ranch, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 3-7.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Zephyrhills has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Wiregrass Ranch struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
