Baseball Recap: Hiawatha Takes a Loss

Hiawatha had lost three straight at home, but on Thursday they dropped their record down to 6-12 to make it four. They lost 18-6 to the Harvest Christian Academy Lions. The Hawks were given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the Lions apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played back in May of 2015.

As for Harvest Christian Academy, they are on a roll lately: they've won 11 of their last 14 contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-9 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.5 runs over those games.

For Harvest Christian Academy's part, Cael Blaudow made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he tossed four innings while giving up just one earned (and three unearned) runs off five hits. Blaudow has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with one home run and five RBI. That home run marked the first that he has launched this season.

In other pitching news, Marcus Booras looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances.

Back at the plate, Obed Lopez and Ben Mitchell did most of the damage at the plate: Lopez went 3-for-5 with one home run, five RBI, and three runs, while Mitchell got on base in three of his five plate appearances with one home run, five RBI, and three runs. Mitchell is becoming a predictor of Harvest Christian Academy's success: when he posts at least one home run the team is undefeated (and 8-9 when he doesn't). Jameson Rapinchuk also deserves some recognition as he launched his first home run of the season.

Coming up, Hiawatha will face off against Durand/Pecatonica at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The Hawks are facing the Rivermen at the right time seeing as the Rivermen are stuck on a three-game losing streak. As for Harvest Christian Academy, they will look to defend their home field on Friday against St. Edward at 5:30 p.m. The Lions will also cruise into their next match with the timing on their side: the Green Wave will have lost five straight heading into Friday's game.