The Cyprus Pirates will square off against the Tooele Buffaloes at 3:30 p.m. on Monday. Cyprus is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.8 runs per game this season.
Cyprus fought the good fight in their extra-innings match against Taylorsville on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Warriors by a score of 8-7.
Breelyn ( Bree ) Garcia put in work no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out seven batters over nine innings while giving up six earned (and one unearned) runs off nine hits. Garcia was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-5 with two runs and two doubles.
In other batting news, Grace Gober was cooking despite her team's loss, getting on base in three of her five plate appearances with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Tooele had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 12.7 runs) and they went ahead and made it four on Friday. They never let the Miners get on the board and left with a 16-0 win. The Buffaloes might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won seven games by eight runs or more this season.
Jaelyn Woods looked comfortable as she struck out eight batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one walk any time she's pitched this season.
At the plate, Tooele got a massive performance out of Hunter Culley, who got on base in three of her four plate appearances with three RBI, one run, and one double. Another player making a difference was Maleah Morgas, who got on base in all three of her plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Tooele was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .500. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .306 or higher in six consecutive contests.
Tooele's victory was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 10-11. The road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 19.5 runs over those games. As for Cyprus, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost four of their last five matchups. That's put a noticeable dent in their 11-9 record this season.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Monday. Cyprus hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. However, it's not like Tooele struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.4 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Everything went Cyprus' way against Tooele when the teams last played back in April of 2024, as Cyprus made off with a 9-1 victory. Will the Pirates repeat their success, or do the Buffaloes have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
