The Port of Los Angeles Polar Bears will venture away from home to square off against the Harbor Teacher Monarchs at 2:30 p.m. on Monday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Port of Los Angeles came out on top against King/Drew on Thursday thanks in part to the team's impressive eight-run fifth inning. The Polar Bears were the clear victors by a 16-2 margin over the Golden Eagles. Winning may never get old, but the Polar Bears sure are getting used to it with their tenth in a row.
Rochelle Watkins was a standout: she went 2-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs. Nevaeh Randall was another key player, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI.
Port of Los Angeles always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .553. They are a perfect 10-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last game, Harbor Teacher made sure to put some runs up on the board against Fremont on Friday. The Monarchs put the hurt on the Pathfinders with a sharp 15-5 win.
Harbor Teacher got a massive performance out of Lexi Cetina, who went 3-for-5 with four stolen bases, two runs, and two doubles. With that strong performance, Cetina is now averaging an impressive 1.2 stolen bases per game. Another player making a difference was Briana Alagba, who went 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI.
Harbor Teacher is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last eight matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-4 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.0 runs over those games. As for Port of Los Angeles, they pushed their record up to 13-4 with the win, which was their third straight on the road.
Monday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Port of Los Angeles hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .470. However, it's not like Harbor Teacher struggles in that department as they've averaged .333. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Everything went Port of Los Angeles' way against Harbor Teacher in their previous meeting back in April, as Port of Los Angeles made off with a 17-0 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Polar Bears since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.