The Hernando Leopards will venture away from home to face off against the Umatilla Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Hernando is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Thursday. They came out on top against The Villages Charter by a score of 11-8. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Leopards considering their two-run performance the game before.
Reagan Wilkes looked comfortable as he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in seven consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Eric O'Dell was excellent, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with one home run. Landon Euler was another key player, going 3-for-4 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
Hernando lost a few balls and finished the game with three home runs. That's the most home runs they've posted since the start of last season.
Meanwhile, Umatilla hadn't done well against South Sumter recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Thursday. The Bulldogs narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past the Raiders 3-2. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Bulldogs.
Keegan St. Amant spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered two runs (both of which were unearned) on four hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Nick Sande, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with four stolen bases and two runs. He is becoming a predictor of Umatilla's success: when he posts at least two stolen bases the team is undefeated (and 13-14 when he doesn't).
Umatilla's record is now 18-14. As for Hernando, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 18-14 record this season.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Hernando has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Umatilla struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.
