The Monroe Vikings are on the road again on Friday to play the Eagle Rock Eagles. One thing working in Monroe's favor is that they have posted big run totals in their last four matchups.
Monroe is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They beat Harbor Teacher by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 10-7.
Miguel Gonzalez and Aaron Beltran made a big impact no matter where they played. Throwing, Gonzalez tossed 4.1 innings while giving up just two earned (and four unearned) runs off six hits. Meanwhile, Beltran pitched an inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive pitching appearances. At bat, Gonzalez scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances, while Beltran scored a run while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Cesar Rojas, who scored three runs and stole four bases while going 3-for-4. He has been hot recently, having posted three or more hits the last four times he's played. Luis Lopez was another key contributor, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, Eagle Rock came tearing into Tuesday's game with six straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 4.5 runs) and they left with even more momentum. They had just enough and edged the Polar Bears out 2-1.
Eagle Rock saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jake Sugi, who scored a run while going 2-for-3.
Monroe is on a roll lately: they've won 12 of their last 14 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 21-9 record this season. As for Eagle Rock, their record now sits at 14-8.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Monroe has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Eagle Rock struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9.2. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Monroe couldn't quite finish off Eagle Rock in their previous matchup back in May of 2022 and fell 2-0. Thankfully for Monroe, Griffin Joseph (who kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out 12 over 5.2 innings pitched) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
