The Rio Hondo Bobcats will be staying on the road on Friday to face off against the Lyford Bulldogs at 7:30 p.m. One thing working in Rio Hondo's favor is that they have posted big run totals in their last five contests.
Rio Hondo put their dominant pitcher on display in the team's seventh consecutive shutout on Tuesday. They were the clear victor by a 15-0 margin over Progreso. The result was nothing new for Rio Hondo, who have now won 14 games by ten runs or more so far this season.
Joshua Laster made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Laster has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in three consecutive pitching appearances. Laster was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-3 with four RBI and a double.
In other batting news, Ruben Castellanos and Caleb Sandoval did most of the damage at the plate: Castellanos scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances, while Sandoval scored two runs while going 1-for-2. Another player making a difference was Rodrigo Saucedo, who went 1-for-1 with two RBI.
Meanwhile, Lyford entered their tilt with Zapata with four consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with five. They came out on top in a nail-biter against the Hawks on Saturday and snuck past 4-2.
Jacob Reyna spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered two runs (both of which were unearned) on eight hits.
At the plate, Isaias Gonzalez was excellent, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of Gael Silva, who went 3-for-3 with two RBI.
Rio Hondo is on a roll lately: they've won ten of their last 11 matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 18-3 record this season. As for Lyford, their win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 13-6.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Rio Hondo has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 4.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Lyford struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.1. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Rio Hondo couldn't quite finish off Lyford when the teams last played back in April of 2023 and fell 4-2. Can Rio Hondo avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
