Gulf Coast and Naples are an even 5-5 against one another since May of 2019, but likely not for long. The Gulf Coast Sharks will head out on the road to take on the Naples Golden Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Gulf Coast is no doubt hoping to put an end to a four-game streak of away losses.
On Tuesday, Gulf Coast sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 4-3 win over Canterbury.
Gulf Coast got a great performance from Evan Garcia as he struck out 11 batters over 5.2 innings while giving up three earned runs off seven hits (and not a single walk). Garcia has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in seven consecutive pitching appearances. Colton Schlief relieved him and did a solid job, tossing 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (he also didn't allow any walks).
On the hitting side, Gulf Coast's victory was truly a team effort as three different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Vincent Mattei, who scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Naples unfortunately witnessed the end of their ten-game winning streak on Tuesday. They fell just short of Loyola Academy by a score of 8-6.
Mac O'MALLEY made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2.
Gulf Coast has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games, which provided a nice bump to their 10-5 record this season. As for Naples, their loss ended a six-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 13-3.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both teams have some strikeout artists on the roster. Gulf Coast has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Naples struggles in that department as they've been averaging 11.2. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Gulf Coast might still be hurting after the 12-4 defeat they got from Naples when the teams last played back in March. Can Gulf Coast avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
