The Boone Braves will head out on the road to square off against the South Lake Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Boone is coming into the match hot, having won their last four games.
Boone made up a huge gap compared to their last game against Dr. Phillips, but they still couldn't quite topple them. Boone blew past Dr. Phillips 11-1 last Thursday. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last six times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Boone got a great performance from Leo Reina as he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over five innings pitched. What's more, Reina gave up only zero earned runs, the fewest he's had since back in February.
At the plate, CJ Nassar was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while going 2-for-3. Those three stolen bases gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Rhys Woodrow, who scored a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Boone always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .515. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Dr. Phillips only posted an OBP of .350.
Meanwhile, South Lake fell victim to Umatilla and their airtight pitching crew on Friday. They took a 3-0 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Bulldogs. The game marked the first time this season in which the Eagles were not able to get on the board.
N Mclees was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he pitched six innings while giving up three earned runs off seven hits. He has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, South Lake saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was J Brown, who went 1-for-3 with one double.
Boone pushed their record up to 5-7 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.3 runs on average over those games. As for South Lake, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost four of their last five contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 9-8 record this season.
